Her Perfect Family
by madeinoctober
Summary: Sequel to Game of Love. Nathan and Brooke Scott are living their dreams of having a family and a successful career, but Haley James has returned to Tree Hill to make sure she's a part of it all.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note:** Thanks for the reivews of Game of Love! I was utterly surprised at how everyone has received it, so I couldn't resist making a sequel. Hope you guys like this one too. It'll be ... very different. So, enjoy...and please read and review!

**PLEASE READ: I think it's pretty crucial to read the first story to be able to understand this part...and the rest of the story. But, to each his own.**

**Prologue**

Turning on the TV, she made herself comfortable as she flipped on the channel to ESPN. In about a minute, she was gonna see his face again.

"_Thanks for tuning in to ESPN Sports Center._

_I'm Marvin McFadden and we have a very special guest here tonight._

_He's a very good friend of mine, _

_so let's please welcome small forward for the Charlotte Bobcats, Nathan Scott!"_

Haley James couldn't help but smile at the sight of Mouth fulfilling his dream to be a sportscaster and Nathan as a pro ball player. Nathan looked obviously uncomfortable on camera, not used to having his face plastered nationally for the country to see. But he put on a brave face and smiled every time.

"_Hey, man. Thanks for having me here."_

"_It's great having you here, Nate! But before we talk sports, I gotta ask you."_

"_Shoot."_

"_How's the family?"_

Haley tucked a hair behind her ear as one hand turned up the volume of the remote control, and the other cradled a 4-year-old so close to her.

"_God, everything's great. Brooke and the baby are well. It's hard to believe she's only 5 months because it seems like she's growing every second!"_

"_That's great. Knowing Brooke she's probably beaming as she's watching you right now--sorry, Brooke, for calling you out on it--is there anything you'd like to say?'_

_The camera turned its attention from Mouth--or Marvin for that matter-- and focused on Nathan. _

"_Well, I guess all I can say is I have the greatest wife and best friend, and she's the real reason why I'm playing basketball." _

He ended the sentence with a wink and Haley smiled as a single teardrop fell from her eye.

"_Oh, and the baby! Sophie, honey, daddy can't wait to see you. I'm coming home soon, baby girl."_

Haley released a soft laugh at Nathan's forgetfulness, kissing the child on the forehead as the interview continued.

Right here, this life, was everything she'd dreamed of.

But she's gonna have to add one more thing.

* * *

**A/N**: So, trust me. There's no typos in this one. I did say read the previous story, right? Chapter 1 coming soon.


	2. Calm Before the Storm

**(PLEASE READ FIRST!) **_It's very important to read the first story**, Game of Love, **because it explains everyone's relationships and history**.** But this story takes place 7 months after the **epilogue of the first story **and the characters are about 26 years old. Nathan plays for the Charlotte Bobcats, after being drafted into the team 4 years ago. Brooke is running Clothes Over Bros, but having the baby has caused her to work from home more often. For the other characters, all their current situations will be explained in the story. And you just might recognize another character._

_Anyway, enjoy the story!_

* * *

**Chapter One: Calm Before the Storm**

The heat was almost unbearable this summer as Brooke Scott stepped out onto the driveway towards the mailbox._ Bills, bills, bills, ooh! birthday card from Nathan's grandparents, bank offers, ugh…more bills. _She stacked the thick envelopes in her hand as she made her way back into the house to the mess waiting for her in the kitchen.

"Hey, sweetie pie," she checked her daughter as she sat in her playpen, "Mommy's almost done, k?" She returned to the kitchen and took out the cherry cobbler from the oven_._ She took a sniff to admire its aroma and placed it down to let it cool as the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Brooke!"

Brooke's face lit up at the voice, "Hey, Peyton. Please don't tell me you're not coming."

Peyton chuckled over the phone, "No, honey, I was just calling to see if you needed any help before the party started.

Brooke scanned the house with her eyes and let out an 'oh!' gasp, "I need help with decorating the backyard a little bit. I haven't had the chance to get out there and put up any balloons since I've been stuck in the kitchen practically all morning."

"Sure, no problem. Jake's got the kids at his parents' so I'll tell him to meet me there. See you in a few minutes?"

"All right, see ya." Brooke hung up the phone and returned to her next task: chicken fingers. Sighing, she opened the refrigerator in search of the chicken she stashed in there after grocery shopping when the front door flew open.

"Brooke!" Nathan Scott's voice boomed from the entrance and Brooke called out from the kitchen. Walking over to his daughter, he picked her up as he gave her a kiss on the forehead, squealing at her father's presence, "Hey, baby girl."

"Ugh, Nathan, your _sweat _is all over her. Now I'm gonna have to give her a bath right after I make the chicken fingers so I can make the sandwiches before all the guests get here. Oh! And I still have to get ready!"

"Hey," Nathan grabbed Brooke's arm lightly to calm her down, "I'll give her the bath, I'll finish with the decorating, and I'll set up the food so you can get ready, okay?"

Brooke gave a little pout as her husband kissed her, "Fine, but Peyton's already coming over to help with the decorations so maybe you two can knock it out in 5 minutes."

"Deal."

Brooke sighed as she patiently tried to prepare the ingredients for the sandwiches as she stuck the chicken fingers in the oven. Nathan was busy making Eskimo kisses with his daughter, but turned half his attention to his obviously tired wife, "Speaking of Peyton, how's she been lately?"

"Oh," Brooke waved an arm, "You know, she's in the process of working with this new artist named Amy something or other. Sounds pretty good, if I say so myself, if you like the brooding type of music. Other than that," she licked a finger covered in mayonnaise, "she's doing the same old with Jake and the kids."

Nathan nodded as he put Sophie down back in her playpen, "By the way, Lucas is gonna make it after all."

"Well, that's nice of him considering he hasn't been bothering to keep in touch."

"He's busy…"

"Busy sulking." She paused to refrain from any further insult to her brother-in-law, "Sorry. How's he been holding up?"

"He's trying to get through it, I guess. You know how much we Scotts love basketball. Winning that championship meant everything to him so you'll have to excuse him if he's retreated under a rock."

Brooke chuckled at the joke, "Well, as long as he's not gonna be sulking today, that's fine. He _is_ Sophie's godfather so he better slap a smile on his face on her birthday."

Standing next to her, Nathan held her hand that was furiously spreading mayonnaise on slices of bread, and turned her to face him, "And how about you? Where's that smile on your face?"

Sighing, she put down the sandwich knife and looked into her husband's eyes, "Tired. I'm up to _here_," she gestured a hand at the height of her chin, "with work and everything. I might have to come back to the boutique sooner than I expected."

"I thought you didn't plan on going back until next month?"

"I did, but Gina's quitting so I need someone to run the store. I just don't have the time to look for potential employees, interview them, background checks, yada...yada..." She trailed off and Nathan kissed her forehead, "All right, but I don't want you to overwork yourself. You take on too much already at home."

"I know, but I can't help it," Brooke leaned into his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist, ignoring the sweat from the aftermath of his daily run, "I've been spending so much time at home and it just doesn't feel like I've spent enough with you."

"Well, basketball season's over so you're gonna get sick of me sooner or later," he returned her embrace by placing his hands on the small of her back, and his chin softly resting on the top of her head, "Don't worry, I'm here. I always will be."

She pulled back from resting her head on his chest, "Yeah, I think I hit the jackpot on this one." She placed a soft, affectionate on his lips and he pulled her closer to savor in the taste of her cherry chapstick. They pulled back from the kiss, but Brooke leaned in to give a quick, bonus one before turning her attention back to her cooking, "I gotta get back to this if I want it to be done before everyone gets here." Nathan smiled and sat down on a bar stool opposite from Brooke, munching on the chips she'd prepared.

Here he was, with his beautiful wife and daughter. A beautiful wife that became a genius in the kitchen considering she didn't even know what a spatula was back in high school. But since graduating college, she'd become a genius at multi-tasking: running a million-dollar company, taking care of him and his daughter, and practically anything you ask her to do. Sometimes, he even wondered how they had enough time to be together, but since basketball season was over, he could make-up for the last several months of quick "Hellos" and late-night phone calls.

He'd been a star in his own right: he was the shooting guard for the Charlotte Bobcats. Going pro-ball was his dream and he was fulfilling it, as well as providing for his wife and daughter.

"Yo, Team Brathan!"

The two looked up and found Peyton walking towards them, her wavy blonde-hair bouncing with each step, "Hey, Nate! Great job this season," she patted him on the back, "Too bad you got knocked out of the playoffs so early."

"Thanks, Peyton," Nathan stood up as she made herself comfortable, "I think. So you gonna help me with the decorations out back or what?"

"Hmm," she contemplated, "I guess it wouldn't hurt." Following Nathan out to the backyard, she picked up a bag of balloons and planted herself next to the rented oxygen tank, "So how've you been?"

"Just the usual. Helping Brooke stay sane as much as I can."

"Nate," she ripped open the bag and began blowing up the balloons, "Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?"

Nathan cleared off a table to prepare it for the food, "I don't know, maybe you can tell me again?"

"I'm serious! I think it's great, Nathan. Everything you've done." She closed off the balloon and tied it to a chair, "I knew you were always this good guy with a great big heart. I'm just glad you came to your senses and finally married Brooke Davis."

"Brooke _Scott_," he corrected, "And...I think I remember this speech at our wedding about three years ago. But, hey, feel free to dish out the compliments when you can." He winked.

"Yeah, sure, just lemme know when you're feeling blue." Peyton laughed and shook her head. Nathan and Brooke Scott had the picture perfect relationship everyone dreamed of: they were wealthy, yes, but modesty and humbleness stayed with them. Ironic, considering they both grew as the snotty, rich kids of Tree Hill. Regardless, being back in each other's lives that one fateful summer changed them for good. And they were blessed with a daughter, and everyone was ready to celebrate as she turned one.

* * *

The party was finally under tow and the guests clamored over how precious Sophie was in her pink dress (made especially for her by her mother), how beautifully decorated the house was with balloons and princess-themed decors, and the food that Brooke and Nathan placed in the formal dining room, practically covering the table with the amount of food she'd made. Most of the guests had gathered outside to enjoy the summertime weather as well as watch their children swim in the pool.

"Mom!" A blonde-haired nine-year-old rushed up to Peyton, soaked in her bathing suit, "Uncle Nathan said to do _this_!" The little girl twisted her body from side to side, causing droplets of water from her long hair and her bathing suit to splash on Peyton. She reached out to stop her from shaking, "Hey! Hey!" The little girl giggled at her mother's surprise, "Jenny, whatever Uncle Nathan says, don't listen to him, okay honey?" She nodded and walked away, jumping into the shallow end of the swimming pool.

Peyton's eyes caught Nathan's, who was laughing uncontrollably standing next to Jake, "Very mature, _Scott_!" She yelled out, shaking her head. "God, Brooke, I didn't know you had two _kids_."

Brooke laughed, bouncing Sophie on her lap, "Yeah, sometimes I forget that I'm actually married to a man." She glanced over at Nathan who was now chatting up Jake with Coronas in their hands, "So how've you been, P. Sawyer?" Peyton smiled at the memory of the way they called each other since they were kids, regardless of their new last names. She still referred to her as B. Davis, as well. Their new last names just didn't quite fit with the traditional; P. Jagielski didn't have the same ring to it anyway.

"Well, aside from un-teaching all the bratty things your husband has been influencing on our daughter, it's good. Still unsuccesful on potty-training Dylan, though. I think I've come to a point where he'll be wearing diapers up until he's 10."

Brooke laughed at the image of Dylan in her head as well as the failed attempts of her best friend to potty train him, "First of all, that should be some form of child abuse. Second, maybe you can have Jake train him instead."

"I would," Peyton glanced at her two-year-old son, who was a few feet away from him surrounded by the River Court boys. Skills, Junk, & Fergie were teaching him words like 'crunk', 'wattup', and 'Uncle Skills is the best basketball player in the world'. "But, by looking at the men in our lives, their methods of teaching is the exact opposite of what I'm trying to do."

Nathan was making his way towards them with two guests and Brooke stood up, shifting Sophie in her arms, and a big smile crawling on her face, "Hey, look who's here!"

"How you doing, Brooke?" He leaned over to her, careful not to position Sophie directly between them, and gave her a hug. He turned his attention to the little girl in her arms, "Happy birthday, sweetie pie." Playing with her arm for a moment, he turned to the woman beside him, "This is my fiancee, Rae."

A brunette woman greeted her with a smile and extended her hand, "Nice to meet you, Brooke. I'm a fan of your clothing line. I've heard so many things about you."

"I hope great things," Brooke teased as she shook Rae's hand, "And fiancee?!" Turning back to the man, she slapped him playfully on the arm, "Someone finally got Dean Winchester to settle down! What'd you do, put a gun to his head?"

They shared a laugh as 'Congratulations' were given, even from Peyton who stood up to greet the couple as well. Rae handed Dean a big box covered in an Elmo giftwrapper and he handed it over to Nathan, "Here you go, man. It's a basketball hoop for kids."

"Uh," Nathan held it in his hands in confusion, "Thanks, but you do remember we have a _daughter_, right?"

"Dude," Dean held his hands up as if the answer was already obvious, "She's a Scott." Nathan enjoyed the stroking of his ego--and family name--and offered the two some food in the kitchen.

"I'm glad you can make it, man. It's good seeing you again."

"Of course, I'd make it. Besides, I'm gonna be around more often." Dean replied, hinting at Nathan. His friend furrowed his brows in curiosity, "Oh, yeah? Why's that?"

"Just got transferred here."

Nathan let out an excited sigh and exchanged high-fives with Dean, "That's great! Now I can school you on the court regularly just like I did back in college."

"You're funny," Dean replied dryly. Turning to his fiancee, who was standing next to him, politely staying out of the conversation, he placed an arm around her shoulder, "She got me to come back here."

"Well, I did spend time here during the a few summers visiting my grandparents and it just made sense to have a family out here. So we just got a place near the river. Besides, L.A. was getting too," she placed a protective hand over Dean's chest, "dangerous for my liking."

Nathan smiled, raising an impressed brow, "Look at you, bringing him back to his roots. I'm liking this girl even more."

Rae shot him a smile, "Dean told me you two met at High Flyers sometime in high school. Said _he_ was the one that would school you on the court."

Dean turned to her, a frown on his face, at her bluntness. Nathan laughed, "Oh yeah? Is that why I'm playing for the NBA and he's out chasing criminals?"

"I can see she'll get along fine with everyone here," Dean smiled, "And I _like_ chasing criminals. But you know I'm better at ball than you."

"Yeah, whatever," Nathan handed Dean a Corona from the refrigerator, "How's your knee been?"

"It's good," he replied, shrugging as he popped the top off, "Never been able to land from a dunk without a little pressure on it, but at least I can still chase after the bad guys."

"Well, all you need's a little extra therapy. We'll play ball sometime."

Rae spoke up, "Okay, it's nice to know you guys are bonding again but I think I'm gonna go back outside. I'm gonna go talk to Brooke about her line." Excited about the idea of speaking to the owner of Clothes Over Bros, she made her way back outside, her white sundress flowing as the two men watched her exit.

"She's pretty cool, right?" Dean asked, who was now holding a plate of food in his hands. Nathan turned to him and nodded in agreement, still somewhat surprised that Dean was back in North Carolina. Seeing eachother at High Flyers (Dean coming from Bear Creek) wasn't exactly a friendly moment, but they grew to be like brothers. They both attended Duke University and played college basketball together, until Dean's knee got the best of him and he had to pull out. Thankfully, he had other interests.

"Honey!" Brooke's voice came from the doorway in the backyard, "Sorry to break up the love-fest but you've got a daughter here--with the help of Jenny--ready to blow out the birthday cake. Oh! And Lucas just got here." She shut the door and the two raced outside to meet the gathering crowd sing 'Happy Birthday' to Sophie Jane Scott.

* * *

"Wattup, _coach_!" Skills exclaimed as he greeted his best friend, "Nice of you to crawl out of your cave for the festivities!"

Lucas laughed as he greeted the rest of the River Court boys with manly hugs and 'hellos'. "Nice welcome, man."

Skills scoffed, "Man, I know you bummin' over that loss to Duke, but ain't no use crying over spilt milk that's already spoiled!"

Lucas's eyebrows met as he quickly tried to analyze his friend's metaphor, immediately realizing he meant that the Duke v. UNC game had occurred a month ago. Brushing it off, he continued to catch up with his friends when his attention turned to Nathan from across the yard, who was cleaning up the cake table. Excusing himself, he approached his little brother, "Can't believe she's already one."

"Hey, man," Nathan acknowledged him, but continued to clean up the mess, "Good to see you here."

"Yeah, so I've heard. I know I haven't been around much but I was just trying to get some things together."

"About that game, Luke?" Nathan scoffed, "I know that championship was your goal but it's done, man. Quit beating yourself up over it. Or else Brooke's gonna hunt you down and do it herself."

Lucas chuckled at the idea of Brooke appearing at his house, waving her arms in the air frantically, lecturing him on why he's being pathetic. "She's not still mad, right?"

"Not so much, she's understanding," Nathan gathered the rest of the mess and threw it into the black trash bag he had laying next to his feet, "You know her, she just doesn't wanna see you miserable when you have so many people that care about you."

"Yeah, well," Lucas leaned on the table and crossed his arms, "There's no need to worry anymore. I think I've used up all my energy feeling sorry from that game. Anything you guys need, I'll be there."

"Thanks," Nathan stopped what he was doing and let out a sigh of relief from finishing the clean-up, "so other than _sulking_, what have you been up to lately?"

Lucas's lips tightened as his gaze transferred from Nathan, to the swimming pool, and back to Nathan, "I need to talk to you about something, man."

"Yeah?" Nathan turned his full attention to Lucas, welcoming anything he wanted to discuss.

Lucas stared at his brother, contemplating on his next words. After a few seconds of silence, and Nathan making faces at him wondering what he had to say, his voice lowered and the tone became equally serious.

"Haley's back in town."


	3. Ghost of You

**Author's Note: **_Thanks for the reviews, everyone. Makes a girl motivated to continue. Forgive me if this chapter seems kinda blah, I typed this up in about an hour or so. Hope you guys are liking it so far. And if you haven't already figured it out, I've added Dean Winchester from Supernatural. Because, well, he's Dean and he's hot. Anyway, enjoy!_

**Chapter Two: Ghost From Lover's Past**

Her bedroom looked just like it did before she ever left Tree Hill. Walking in there, memories of being with Nathan flooded her mind and she blinked away the tears that gathered in her eyes.

"Mama?"

The innocent voice of her daughter filled the quiet room and led her to sit next to the child, pulling the blanket higher to her chest, "Mama, are you okay?"

"Oh, sweetie," she began, kissing her on the forehead, "Mama's just feeling a little sad right now.

"Is it 'cause you miss Daddy?" She looked up at her mother with wide eyes, the same eyes that Haley had lovingly looked at for so many years, reminding her of him.

"Yeah, I miss Daddy." She sniffled through words, running her fingers through the child's hair, "I miss Daddy a lot."

"Don't worry, Mama. He says he'll be home soon, remember?"

A chuckle escaped from Haley's lips, her thoughts looking back at the moment he looked into the screen and declared he was coming home to his family soon. Closing her eyes, to conceal the sadness from her daughter, she gave her one last kiss on the forehead, "I know, sweetie. I know. Daddy's gonna be home really soon."

* * *

Nathan Scott settled into the bed he shared with his wife, taking off his shirt and revealing a chiseled torso. Next to him, Brooke was decked in a red, satin nightgown that fell just below her rear-end, and she'd found peace within the novel she held in her hands. Noticing her husband's gaze, she turned to him, "You okay?"

"Yeah," Nathan inched closer to her, placing his arm around her shoulder and bringing her closer to him, "It's just been a really long day."

"Tell me about it," she sighed, bringing the book down to focus her attention on him, "Crazy thing Dean being back, right? It's like seeing a ghost."

Nathan's lips tightened but nodded in agreement to conceal his anxiety from his wife. Brooke sensed Nathan being tense and looked up at him, "Nathan, what's the matter? You've been quiet since Lucas showed up. Did you guys fight or something?"

"No, no," he let out a nervous chuckle, "It's nothing like that. I was just thinking about some stuff."

Brooke made a face at him, "O-kay, are we gonna play twenty questions or are you just gonna tell me?"

"It's just family stuff. He says my mom's been feeling down since my dad went back to California to see my grandparents for a bit. I guess I thought I would drop by and see how she's doing."

Brooke raised an eyebrow, "Wow, Deb misses Dan? That's something I never would've imagined when we were younger." She looked back down and nestled her head into the space between his shoulder and chest, "But I thought she went with him?"

"She came back early for a work thing." He quickly replied.

Brooke shrugged, "It doesn't hurt, I guess. You can harass her for not showing up today like she promised."

Nathan sighed at his mother's absence, "She said she was sorry. You know she wouldn't miss this for the world if it wasn't important."

"What could be more important than celebrating her grand-daughter's first birthday?!" She replied in annoyance of the situation.

"She had to _work_!" Nathan shouted, defending her, "Besides, I don't see you whining about your mother not being here."

"There's a difference, Nathan," she pulled back from him and returned to her previous upright position, "I don't _like_ my mother."

Nathan shook his head, calming himself down from his minor outburst, "Sorry, I'm just tired. I'm gonna get some sleep." Turning over away from her, he made himself comfortable on his pillow.

Brooke nodded and resumed to the chapter she had bookmarked with her thumb, "I know. Don't worry about it. Good night." She slapped his back playfully with the back of her hand and he instinctively sat up and turned to face her, "I love you." And planting a kiss on her lips.

She chuckled at his obedience, "Love you, too. _Punk_." She placed her hand on his cheek and pushed him away softly as he returned to his position.

Laying there, Nathan Scott stared off into space, too many thoughts in his mind prevented him from anticipating peaceful slumber. In the background, he could hear Brooke's husky chuckle as she turned the pages of her book, but sound of Lucas's voice deafeningly pierced his ears… Haley's back in town.

The conversation with his older brother earlier in the day never ceased to leave him. Lucas had convinced him to stay away from Haley, assuming her return may not have anything to do with him at all. But Nathan knew better. He knew Haley had intentions that weren't pleasing, and he didn't want Brooke to have any part of it. He didn't want Haley James near his family.

* * *

The weekend had flown by and it was back to another dreadful Monday. For Brooke, it usually meant nothing but staying at home with the baby. But with the boutique so close to not having a manager to watch over it, she was in her office digging through her files of applications submitted in the past month, prospective employees dying to be even the slightest bit a part of the C/B clothing line, hoping she'd come across someone able to run her store.

_Too Victoria-like; not enough experience; never had a job…what?_ She shook her head, _her hours aren't flexible; her hours are impossible_…She let out a frustrated grunt as she slammed the papers on her desk, putting her head in her hands and massaging her temples.

Nathan's voice appeared in the doorway, carrying Sophie in his arms, "Mommy needs to relax before she has a nervous breakdown."

Brooke sighed and looked up at him, smiling at the little girl who was teething on a Michael Jordan mini-figurine, "My god, Nathan, she'll choke on that thing!"

"No, she won't," he defended, pulling it away anyway to relieve Brooke of any worries, "but I'm serious. You should relax. I'm gonna make some breakfast. Dean and Rae are coming over."

Brooke blinked several times, trying to process what he'd said, "Oh, um," she ran a finger through her messy hair and glanced at the clock that read 9:30 am, "I didn't even realize I skipped breakfast."

"See, I told you to relax."

Brooke stood up and made her way upstrairs back to the bedroom, "I'll take a shower then. Don't forget to turn off the coffee machine when it's done. You have a habit of leaving that on and little things like that can add up to the electricity bill. And use the eggs on the top shelf of the fridge because the ones on the bottom shelf are for these desserts I'll make for Karen, and the sausages should be in the kitchen fridge, but if not they're probably in the garage fridge. And don't forget to feed Opie _and_ the baby."

Nathan widened his eyes in tune with a mocking grin, "Well. Okay."

She laughed and retreated into the bathroom, turning on the shower.

Sophie giggled in his arms as he bounced her with each step he took to the kitchen, "Mommy's just a little neurotic when it comes to some things, huh? Yeah, don't tell her I said that. She'll beat me up." Sophie didn't react to his joke--naturally--and continued to place the toy back in her mouth as Nathan sat her in her high chair.

* * *

"So, Rae, what exactly do you do? We didn't get a chance to talk much the other day what with Peyton talking about her new artist." Brooke asked, as she sipped her coffee.

"Actually, I'm a respiratory therapist," she paused as the impressed 'Ohs' were passed around, "Only been doing it for a couple years. Before that, I worked at a law firm, holding down the fort most of the time."

Nathan smiled, "That's awesome. So how'd you guys meet?"

"Well," Dean exchanged looks with his fiancee, who was trying not to laugh, "It's actually pretty simple. Boy meets girl, they fall in love--boom! Here we are."

Brooke arched an eyebrow, "Riiight. From the looks of her face, it didn't look that simple."

"She's just being weird." Dean shook his head, trying to avoid the topic.

"Come on, tell us," Nathan urged Rae, "we could use a laugh."

"Okay, okay," she held up her arms and Dean shot her a "DON'T" look, "Back when I was working at that law firm, it was located in downtown L.A. So I always took my lunch breaks at this great Greek sandwich shop down the street, which isn't too far from where Dean worked."

"At the LAPD," Dean clarified.

Nathan made a face, "Yeah, I got that. _Thanks_." Brooke shaking her head with a grin.

"So anyway, I was standing in line waiting for my order when I notice him next to me staring, not even the least bit subtle with his approach. The guy comes with my order and as I pay him, Dean says 'So, you like sandwiches?'" With that, she deepened her voice and imitated him.

Nathan and Brooke burst into laughter as Dean rolled his eyes and glared at Rae for embarrassing him. She shrugged and put on an innocent face as she joined the two in laughter.

"Smooth move, Winchester." Nathan teased.

"Don't worry, Dean," Brooke assured him, "Nathan's not exactly the king of pick-up lines either.

"Hey! I resent that. Besides, why would I use a pick-up line on you when I've known you for years?"

Brooke shook her head and smiled at the other couple, who was laughing. The rest of breakfast was spent talking about basketball, Dean's job, their wedding plans, and C/B.

"It's just a little stressful right now, with my current manager quitting this week. I need to find a replacement, _pronto_."

Rae nodded and Dean turned to Nathan, obviously not interested in their conversation. Nathan laughed as the two men continued to talk while the ladies reveled over the horror of not having anyone running the boutique.

"Maybe I can fill in until you can find someone permanent." Rae offered.

Brooke's mouth slightly opened in surprise, "Oh, um," she exchanged looks with Nathan who heard the same thing, "you know, thanks for the offer but um--what about you? You're a _freakin'_ respiratory therapist. That's like a step down in salary."

"More like 10 steps down." Dean pointed out.

Rae rolled her eyes at him, "It's not a problem. I haven't found really started looking for jobs at the hospitals, so I guess I'm in a rut too. Look at it this way, we're helping each other out."

Brooke contemplated the offer, with Nathan and Dean staring at her as she did so, and she gave in. "Okay! All right, great. Wow. That was easy."

Dean laughed, "You're not even gonna run a background check on her? She might be a drug addict or has a criminal record."

"I highly doubt that." Brooke retorted, "Besides, you're a detective. If she gives me any trouble, I'll give you a call."

"Nice," Dean smirked, "And I'll be here to _punish_."

The other three made a disgusted face at him and they resumed their breakfast. After much catching up on Nathan and Dean's part, and Brooke and Rae getting to know each other, they parted ways by noon. Dean promised to come back and play ball with Nathan as soon as he gets a day off, and Brooke promised Rae she'll give her the rundown of C/B the next day.

* * *

Closing the front door, Nathan began to walk upstairs, leaving Brooke with Sophie playing in the living room. Upon entering the bedroom, he searched for a towel and made his way into the bathroom to take another shower. Looking at himself in the mirror, he shook his head, as if he was ashamed of the man that stared back at him. Stepping into the shower, his mind filled with thoughts of what the rest day had in store for him.

Noticing her husband's feet shuffling in the hallway, Brooke turned her attention to him, "Where you going?"

"Just gonna meet up with Luke for a bit."

Brooke nodded, "Oh, well, I'm gonna bring Sophie to the park later. You wanna come?"

"Hmm," Nathan appeared like he was in a hurry, checking his watch every now and then, "If I'm back in time, then yeah. If not, go on without me."

"Well, that defeats the purpose of the family time I anticipated."

"Then why'd you invite me?" He shot back at her, which resulted in Brooke rolling her eyes and looking away from him, clearly upset at his outburst, "Look, I'm sorry."

He waited for her reply and expected something like 'It's okay' or 'Don't worry about it,' but she'd kept her attention the little girl in her arms as one hand held a toy rope to play tug of war with Opie. Receiving no response, he muttered another apology before exiting the house.

Brooke kissed the top of her daughter's head, thinking about Nathan's odd behavior. As her dog won the game, she chuckled and petted him on the head, when the phone suddenly rang. Rising from the floor, she reached next to the couch, "Hello?"

"Brooke!"

"Deb?"

"Hey, I'm so sorry about this weekend. I wish we would've been able to make it for the party but you know Dan, he was challenged to a golf tournament and he wouldn't say no. I hope you understand."

Brooke's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion as her mind drifted back to the night of the party, "Oh, um, where are you anyway?"

"We're still in California."

Brooke paused, unsure of what to say. Either Nathan had misunderstood Lucas or worse…Nathan lied to her. Shaking it away from her thoughts, she tried to play it off, "Oh, that's right! Sorry, just a little tired. Don't worry about it, Mom. We missed you though."

"Aww, I missed you guys too. Anyway, give Sophie kisses from me. And we should be home soon, okay?"

"All right, have fun out there." Her mother-in-law ended the conversation and Brooke set the phone back down. Standing up, she brought Sophie with her upstairs for her nap before heading to the park.

* * *

Leaning back on the park bench, she bounced Sophie in her lap as Opie rested himself beside them on the grass. Since it was summer vacation for children, the park had its fair share of rambunctious kids chasing each other, racing down slides, swinging, and throwing sand everywhere.

Sophie giggled as Brooke made cooing noises at her, periodically giving her kisses on the face. Nowhere to be found was Nathan, whom she tried to call thirty minutes before she planned to head to the park, but he didn't answer. Her mind wandered back to conversation with Deb, not forgetting to keep her leg bouncing as Sophie enjoyed the turbulence of it. Just as she was replaying in her head the conversation with Nathan the other night and the phone call with Deb, a small voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Is this your dog?"

Brooke looked down to find a little girl staring back up at her, a hand on Opie's head, petting him softly. Brooke didn't even see her approach but replied with a smile, "Yeah, honey. His name's Opie."

"Opie." She repeated, saying the dog's name in a playful manner as she continued to pet him.

Bewildered at the sudden appearance--and trusting--of the child, she looked around the park for a parent that may be looking on. Looking from left to right, no particular person caught her attention.

Until her eyes landed on a familiar face from across the playground. The face was too far and seemed blurry to figure out, but she was sure that the person was staring back at her. Squinting her eyes, adjusting it to the sun's rays that obstructed her view, she leaned her head forward slightly to get a better view.

In the sudden realization of the familiar face, she let out a quiet gasp. Holding Sophie closer to her, she held a steady gaze on the person, as if waiting to see if she'd vanish like a ghost would. Because right now, it definitely appeared like she was seeing a ghost.

Right now, she was definitely looking at Haley James.


	4. Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Brooke

**Author's Note:** _Glad everyone's enjoying the story so far. Hope this chapter will do you guys well. _

_Disclaimer: The chapter title is a play on Chelsea Handler's book. _

* * *

**Chapter Three: Are You There, Vodka? It's me, Brooke**

**Two hours earlier….**

Nathan Scott pulled up in front of the familiar two-story James household, looking up at the window he once snuck into to spend the night with his girlfriend…_ex-girlfriend. _Taking a deep breath, he mustered up enough energy to exit the car and found himself right at the front door. Without a single knock or a press of the door bell, the front door opened with her standing right in front him.

She didn't look the same as he remembered her from before. This time, her hair was shorter, chin-length for that matter, and a deep chestnut color. Her small frame continued to look at him as he took in the image of whom he once loved.

"Hey, Nathan."

Nathan gulped as his mouth began to open in reply, "Hey, Haley."

"What are you doing standing there," she extended her arms out for a hug, "can't even give an old friend a hug?"

Nathan nervously chuckled but complied, wrapping his arms around her waist and then releasing her momentarily. Without a word, she stepped aside and let him enter, gesturing for him to sit in living room.

"Do you want anything to drink? Soda, juice, coffee, beer?"

He held up a hand, "It's okay, I won't stay long."

Haley grinned and nodded, placing herself next to him, causing him to shift uncomfortably. She placed a hand on his knee and his eyes watched it carefully, "So, how'd you know I was back in town?"

"Uh," Nathan averted his eyes from her hand to her face, "Lucas mentioned it the other day."

"Of course he did," Haley giggled, not the least bit surprised.

"What are you doing home, anyway? I thought you were still teaching over in New York."

"Wow," Haley gasped in surprised and smirked, "If that's your version of 'welcome home' then thanks, I think. I still teach there, but it's summer vacation, hot shot."

Nathan let out a chuckle at the obvious as Haley continued, "Plus, I wanted to spend time with my family. Haven't been able to in a _really _long time."

"That's why you're home?"

"Mmhmm," Haley clapped her hands once and clasped them together, "Nothing like a little family time."

Nathan nodded, "Oh."

"Why, did you think I was here for anything else?" Her smirk was almost mocking, and she tilted her head slightly to the side as Nathan turned to face her.

"It's just that," sighing in relief, "I thought you came back for--"

"You?" Haley's eyebrow arched as she finished his sentence. Looking at him, she admired his face, the way his blue eyes pierced hers and the sound of his voice soothing her eyes. Yep, this is the Nathan Scott she fell in love with--and he's only gotten better throughout the years.

The momentary silence was broken by Nathan, standing up and making his way to the front door. Haley walked behind him, holding the front door open as he stood in front of her one last time before leaving. "Nathan, would it be too much to ask if you'd like to have dinner sometime?"

Nathan contemplated the thought, but cursed himself silently for even considering. "I'm _married_."

Haley scoffed, "It's _dinner_, Nathan. It's not exactly infidelity."

"Brooke will think so."

"What's your point?"

"My point is," he let out an exacerbated sigh, "I'm not gonna lie to my _wife_."

"Then…tell her we're having dinner. You know, catching up and stuff." She placed a hand on her hip, as if calling him out for the challenge.

"I'm not gonna have dinner with you, Haley," he turned to walk away.

Haley called out to him, "For someone who doesn't want to lie to his wife you're doing a pretty great job at it."

Nathan stopped in his tracks, clenching a fist at her words. Not five seconds passed and the front door shut, and he was left on the James's walk path cursing himself for even seeing her. But he needed to. He needed to make sure she wasn't back in Tree Hill for anything other than visiting her family--her _parents_. Before pressing on the acceleration, he took one last look at the house.

The vision of a child appeared in the bedroom window that once belonged to Haley. He narrowed his eyes to focus on the face, but the child pulled the curtain back into place, concealing any further identification. Nathan could swear he saw something--_someone_--looking down at him with dismal eyes. But dismissed the thought when a phone call from Jake appeared on his phone.

She pulled the curtain back into place and turned around to find her mother smiling back at her, leaning against the door frame. "Was that Daddy, Mama?"

Haley admired the innocence and longing in her daughter's eyes, "Yeah, baby, that was Daddy."

"Why did he leave?"

"Because," Haley began as she walked over to the little girl, picking her up in her arms, "Daddy's gonna surprise you with lots of toys the next time he comes. I told him you love The Littlest Pet Shop so he's gonna buy lots of those just for you, okay?"

"When's he coming back?"

"I dunno yet, pumpkin," Haley kissed her daughter on the forehead, "But I know Daddy can't wait to see you."

* * *

Brooke glanced at her cell phone that was laying on the kitchen counter, checking if any calls from Nathan had arrived. Looking up at the clock above the dining table she noted that he'd been gone for several hours now and dinner was being served. She fiddled with Sophie's bib before placing it around her neck. Sitting on the dining chair opposite from her daughter, she nodded her head in agreement as Peyton vented on the other side of the line.

"I mean, I have a pretty good reason, right?"

"Hmm? Yeah, of course you do."

Peyton sighed, "You weren't even listening. What's up with you?"

Brooke held the phone firmly between her ear and shoulder as her hands mushed the potatoes in the baby's plate, "I was! I promise. I'm just trying to feed Sophie."

"Oh," Peyton's voice cheered up, "Well, in that case, I'll leave you to the mommy duties. I have to go back to my own. You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah," Brooke chuckled, unsure of what to tell Peyton about seeing Haley at the park. She wasn't even sure if she really did see Haley, but at the same time, her gut feeling was telling her otherwise. The entire conversation was initiated by Peyton anyway, to complain about the troubles some artists on her label was giving her. Brooke didn't feel it was right to turn the attention on her. She resisted telling her best friend when Nathan suddenly appeared, walking into the dining room. Whirling around in surprise, she ended the conversation with Peyton, and tried her best to have a nonchalant approach to his whereabouts.

"Sorry, I'm late."

"Hmm," she fed a spoonful to Sophie, "Is that the new trend nowadays? Handing out apologies every time you talk to your wife?"

Okay, maybe the nonchalant approach didn't work.

Nathan shrugged, "I got caught up. I was out at a bar with Jake."

"I thought you were with Lucas."

Nathan quickly replied, sure that he'd given her even more suspicion than she already has, "I was, but Jake called, so..." He trailed off as Brooke continued to stare at him, trying to read his strange behavior. Attempting to change the subject, he kissed Sophie on the head and helped himself to the dinner Brooke made.

"What'd you end up doing today?"

"I took Sophie and the dog to the park. I called you," she fed the baby another spoonful, "you never called back."

"You did? Sorry, I probably didn't hear it." He tightened his lips at the realization that he was apologizing profusely--with not much meaning behind it. Brooke didn't bother to look at him as he sat down opposite from her, eating the roast beef, potatoes, and vegetables she'd made. In her mind, and in her heart--hell, her _gut_--was telling her his behavior may be linked to the ghost of his past lover that suddenly reappeared. Glancing at him, she watched as he ate without saying a word, without looking at her--as if speaking would reveal all that he was hiding. But what was he hiding? Why _should_ he be hiding anything?

Nathan could feel his wife's eyes burning into his skin as she casually stole glances, and a big weight suddenly fell on his shoulders. What the hell's the matter with him?

"I'm bringing Sophie to Peyton's tomorrow," Brooke's voice dissolved the silence, "I'm showing Rae around Clothes Over Bros." Her voice was flat, as if reading a statement from a piece of paper with no purpose. Nathan didn't say anything, and Brooke was finally fed up.

"No, honey, don't bother. _I'll_ take Sophie tomorrow. I might even take her for a walk around the neighborhood, or maybe even go for a swim," her voice mocking him, she rolled her eyes at his lack of reaction. "Dammit, Nathan." She whispered the phrase aggressively, keeping herself calm in front of the baby.

"What do you want me to say, Brooke?"

"I want you to _talk_ to me, Nathan. Don't just sit there and act like your behavior hasn't been odd as of late."

"I'm not--" He put his fork down, trying to keep his voice calm, "I'm just thinking about a lot of things, okay?"

"About _what_, Nathan? _Tell_ me what you're thinking." Her voice was pleading and it almost broke his heart to hear the tone. He couldn't stand to just sit there and pretend like everything was okay. He knew deep inside that Haley being back home _does_ have everything to do with him and his family. So he fought like hell with himself to not bring it up--figuring it was the only way to protect them from his mistakes.

"I'm gonna go upstairs and take a shower." Standing up, he walked out of the dining room and the sound of his footsteps disappeared upstairs. His third shower of the day--he felt like ridding himself of the dirt; the mistake that had come back to haunt him in his life. That, and to avoid looking at the sad--and periodically furious-eyes of his wife and the innocence wrapped up in Sophie's smile. As the water trickled its way down his body, he closed his eyes.

* * *

It was nearing midnight when Lucas Scott arrived at Haley's family's house. She let him inside, careful not to wake her parents and her daughter that slept soundly upstairs. Leading him to the kitchen, they sat across each other and at first made polite conversation. Not five minutes had passed when the events from earlier were disclosed from Haley's mouth.

Lucas ran a hand through his dirty-blonde hair, and narrowed his eyes to grasp what his best friend was telling him. "So, wait--he just showed up?"

"Yeah," Haley leaned back against the wooden chair in the dining room, "We talked for a little bit and I invited him to dinner."

"What?" He leaned forward slightly, "What did he say?"

"He wouldn't budge."

"You know, Hales--he loves them with all his heart. Brooke and Sophie are the most important things in his life. Even greater than basketball."

Haley glared at the sentence he spoke and her voice a little louder, "Dammit, Lucas--he's the _father_ of my daughter! Just because he slipped doesn't give him the right to deny her."

"He doesn't even know about her--"

"But he will."

Lucas shook his head, "I thought you were gonna leave them alone. I've helped you these past few years, Hales--"

"And I appreciate that, Luke, trust me--I do. But she's been asking about when he's coming home. She saw him when he drove away and...god, I can't pretend like he doesn't exist! She needs him in her life!" She stood up in frustration and began to pace in the kitchen, Lucas eyeing her every movement. She'd crossed her arms across her chest, trying to keep herself together.

"So what happens to them? To Brooke and Sophie? That's his _wife_ and daughter--can you imagine what you'll be putting them all through?"

"His daughter's not even old enough to grasp the idea of her dad having someone else's child--his _first_ child for that matter. I don't give a _shit_ what it does to Brooke. But my daughter wants her father. What will I be putting her through if I denied her the right to be with him?"

Lucas's eyes suddenly shifted from her movements back to her eyes. He raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean _be_ with him?"

"I mean," Haley sighed and placed both hands down on the table, looking straight into his eyes, "He's gonna be in her life, Lucas. God help me, I will do whatever it takes for him to be in her life."

* * *

Brooke watched Sophie as she peacefully slept in her crib, and she could swear there was a hint of a smile on her daughter's face. She'd been sitting in the nursery since after dinner, partly wanting to avoid slapping Nathan across the face for acting the way he did. From across the hallway she could her their bedroom door creaking, indicating that it was being open. But a sudden shut of the door soon came after. Either Nathan was walking to the nursery or he simply changed his mind and went to bed.

It was obviously the latter.

She sat in the dark and clasped her hands on top of her crossed legs. She was rocking herself in the rocking chair, trying to make sense of her husband's sudden distance from her. Brooke knew it had something to do with Haley, but regardless of being Haley's past lover, the way he'd been acting was no excuse. An inch of her thoughts wandered to the impossible--is there something he's hiding from her that involved Haley? She shook the thought from her mind, afraid of what it might do to her sanity.

"Hey."

A whispered voice came from behind her and she turned to the source; Nathan had his arms crossed, leaning on the door frame. She looked back at the crib and sighed. At this point, she didn't know what to say to him.

"I'm s--"

She quickly turned her head, a look of discontent on her face and he stopped himself, knowing she didn't wanna hear it. His eyes wandered to the sleeping baby, "You coming to bed soon?"

Brooke shrugged.

Nathan sighed. He turned around and retired back to the bedroom.

* * *

Brooke held her mocha double latte (with extra foam) firmly in one hand as she used the other to point as she gave Rae the tour of C/B. Ending the tour back at the front desk, she laid a hand on the counter, "And this is where you'll oversee everything. I know it's a lot, but it's only temporary until I can find the time to sort through the applications actually take the time to read them."

Rae grinned, aware of the tiredness Brooke had written all over her face. That and the bags under her eyes, "I'll be fine. But how about you?"

Brooke took a sip of her drink.

"You look tired."

Brooke shrugged, "I have a baby. I think that's a pretty good reason, right?"

Rae noted the annoyance in her voice and changed the subject. "So I was thinking, Dean's gonna be working tonight and I'll be by myself at our place. I was wondering if you would like to come over for dinner? Just us girls? It's the least I can do for you being so hospitable to us."

Brooke furrowed her brows, "Oh, don't even worry about it. Dean's an old friend and you've become one of ours. But I'm not sure we'll be able to have dinner tonight."

"Oh," Rae fell disappointed, "That's okay, then. I understand having the baby and all--it's fine."

"Oh, no, no," Brooke shook her head, and laid her hand on Rae's arm, "It's not that, trust me. I just don't--well, Nathan and I aren't exactly on speaking terms for the moment.."

"What?" Rae's eyes widened, "What happened?"

Brooke looked into Rae's eyes, and decided right then and there to trust her. "He's just being different. I don't know. Last night, he was avoiding trying to talk to me, which isn't really like him. I wanted to actually talk to him when I got home later so I can at least make sense of how he's been acting. But I knew something was up ever since--"

The sound of the doors opening and closing turned their attention to the front. Rae instantly tuned into the role Brooke has assigned to her and she slapped a smile on her face, "Hi, welcome to Clothes Over Br--" The customer had stopped within feet of them, and her eyes were fixed on Brooke's.

"What are you doing here?" Brooke's raspy voice said quietly, as calmy as she could as her eyes looked back at her husband's ex-girlfriend.

Haley sighed, reminding herself that everything she was doing was for her daughter, and replied with a flat voice, "Nice seeing you too, Brooke."

"Oh, I don't remember stuttering," Brooke turned to Rae as if asking for assurance and then back to Haley, with a sharper tone in her voice, "I asked...what are you doing here?"

"Relax, _princess_, we're all adults here," Haley rolled her eyes, "I'm here to look for a dress."

Rae perked up at the chance of providing her first customer excellent service but retreated to her previous state when the look on Brooke's face showed no sign of being amused. The two women stared at each other for what seemed like forever before Brooke spoke, "Help yourself."

"Oh, trust me," Haley smirked and walked to the dress rack near the wall to her left, "I will."

Brooke glared at the other woman, Rae unsure of what was happening...but knew not to ask. At least, not right now. Haley patiently browsed through the dresses, making a face at designs that didn't suit her needs. Reaching the end of the rack, she turned to Brooke, who was still staring at her, "Hmm, don't you have anything more..._revealing_? Being Brooke Davis and all, I would imagine it's your forté."

Brooke wanted to throw her drink at Haley, tackle her on to the floor, and maybe throw a punch--or twelve. The tension in there was definitely thick enough to be cut by a butcher knife--or hell, a machete. Haley shook her head at Brooke's lack of reply, "God, I thought Clothes Over Bros would have better service than this."

"I think it's time I pull out my 'right to refuse service' card," Brooke put her drink down on the counter and slowly walked towards Haley, "So how about you get the hell out?"

Haley challenged her, but retorted in a soft voice, "Refuse service for what? I'm just looking for a dress."

"I suggest you leave before I slip you into something more comfortable," Brooke leaned forward slightly, "Like a fucking _coma_."

"Tsk, tsk," Haley shook her head and slowly walked backwards to the door, "Oh, Brooke. Your husband kisses you with that mouth? Hmm, I should talk like you more often."

Rae stepped in, "Ma'am, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."

"Oh, please, don't try and be the sidekick," Haley rolled her eyes, "See you around, Brooke." With that, she walked out of C/B and strolled down the street. Brooke made a fist with one hand, but kept it to her side. Yep, Haley was definitely back in town for Nathan. But something tells her it had more to do than just trying to steal her husband away. Rae stood next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Should I even ask?"

Brooke didn't bother to look at her, "It's a long story."

"Well," Rae smiled, "You can tell me over dinner."

"I guess for his safety, I'll take you up on that offer."

Rae chuckled as Brooke turned back around to retrieve her drink from the counter. Her phone suddenly alerted her to a text message that came from her husband.

_From: Nathan  
July 22, 2008 9:30am_

_Hey, honey. Gonna go see my mom for a bit.  
Love you._

Shaking her head, she took a drink, wishing that it was vodka instead.

* * *

The River Court hadn't changed all these years. The concrete made a sound against his shoes as he landed from his trademark jumpshot. "Lucky shot," Dean grabbed the ball and tossed it to Nathan.

"Yeah, you just can't take it that I'm whoopin' your ass."

"I hardly count leading by 10 points whoopin' my ass. I can still make a comeback." Dean sat down on the grass, taking a drink from his water bottle.

"Yeah," Nathan walked over to him, "I can see you really trying."

Jake, who was still on the concrete with his hands up, "Guys, you do remember we were playing HORSE right?"

Nathan and Dean chuckled before Nathan replied, "Nah man, that was all you."

Jake made a face as he walked over to the two men who'd made themselves comfortable on the grass. Nathan wiped off the sweat from his forehead with his arm, "Man, it's good to be with friends again. Playing pro ball throughout the year really makes you miss everyone."

"Like your wife and kid?" Jake spoke up, causing Dean and Nathan to shoot him a look, "What? Nate, the entire time you've been married to Brooke, you've never been on the River Court at this time."

Dean looked down at his watch, "Yeah, man, it's almost 10."

Nathan shrugged, not interested in discussing it any further, "Just wanted to play ball." He took a drink from his water bottle and let out a refreshing sigh.

Dean nudged him in the side, "Hey, man," he made a gesture with his finger by holding it up this lip, "you might wanna wipe the bullshit you left on your lip."

Jake laughed as Nathan pretened to make a fist and punch Dean. "No, seriously, man. Why are you out here?"

Nathan shook his head, aware the two wouldn't quit badgering him, "Just stuff. I dunno, just a lot of things going on in my head lately. So much that I can't even talk to my wife about it--maybe 'cause I don't even know what to say, where to start."

"How about, you say 'Hey, honey, we need to talk?'" Jake suggested, he gestured for the two to get up, "Come on, let's break up the girl fest."

Dean stood up and wiped any grass off his shorts, but raised his eyebrow, "Girl fest?"

"Yeah, at your place." Jake pointed out as Nathan shot him a look of confusion. "Uh, Brooke called Peyton earlier saying that Dean's girlfriend was planning on having dinner tonight. I took the kids over to my parents'. So...girl fest."

Nathan's face furrowed, "And...when were you planning on telling us this?"

"I didn't," Jake shrugged, "Thought you two already knew." In a matter of minutes, the three men headed to their cars and back to Dean's place.

* * *

The three girls had gathered in the dining room, laughing with drinks in their hands. Peyton eventually caught her breath, "I can't believe you threatened her."

Brooke had a less than amused smile on her face, but shrugged, "I know she's here for reasons that are way deeper than just wanting Nathan back."

"Whom she won't get," Rae pointed out, as she took a sip of her Grey Groose vodka, "Besides, she's just trying to get under your skin. Don't let her get to you."

"Uh, newsflash," Peyton slightly slurred as she put down her beer, "She's already letting Haley get to her. But no worries, Brooke--Nathan would never dream of going back to her."

"Yeah, if he knows what's good for him." Rae answered, causing Brooke to have a slight grin on her face. Deep down, she knew Nathan wouldn't leave--not even for a second--but having an ex-girlfriend back in town and storming into C/B made her think of all sorts of scenarios. "It's just that--I know there's so much more than Haley being back in town. It's just that feeling..."

"Woman's intuition." Peyton began.

"Oh, that's got like a 99.99 accuracy." Rae added, exchanging glances with Peyton. Brooke said a dry 'Haha' before she took another drink of her screwdriver, annoyed at their humor with her situation, but appreciated the honesty anyway.

In a few moments, Dean and his troop appeared in the dining room. "Well, well," his deep voice filled the entire room and the girls turned around, "if it isn't the Gossip Girls. Serena, Blair, Jenny." He nodded his head as he said each name to each girl. "Thanks for the invite."

"Dean," Rae stood up to greet him with a hug, "I thought you weren't gonna be home until midnight."

Dean shrugged and kissed her 'hello' as Jake made his way to the front, "Wait, what is this? Are you girls trying to plot our murder?"

Peyton rolled her eyes, "Trust me, honey. If I was gonna kill you, I wouldn't need to plan it." She and Jake exchanged mimicking expressions and ended it with a grin.

Brooke, on the other hand, took another swig of her drink, and directed her attention to Jake and Dean, "I just wanted to let you two know," she pointed at the figure who stood behind them, "there's a deaf-mute behind you." Peyton and Rae exchanged glances in horror at Brooke's statement, with Jake and Dean turning to see Nathan shaking his head at his wife.

"That's why you were at the River Court, huh?" Jake muttered to him.

Nathan sighed, "Brooke. Come on, let's go home."

Brooke downed the rest of her drink and slammed the glass on the table, without facing her husband, "I really don't wanna talk to you right now."

"You've been drinking, you need to get some rest," Nathan approached her, "Come on, let's go. We'll pick up Sophie on the way."

"Oh, wow, _now_ you're the caring husband and father?" Brooke turned to look at him, "what happened, _honey_? Your balls grew back?"

"Brooke." Peyton narrowed her eyes at her best friend. Brooke glared at her in response.

Nathan tried to remain patient, aware of his wife's intoxicated state, "Come on. We'll go home, take you to bed, and we'll talk in the morning."

"Talk?" Brooke scoffed, "I didn't know you were capable of such action."

The patience didn't last long. Nathan's voice firmed, "_Brooke_. Don't do this right now. Let's go."

Brooke stood up, causing Nathan to step back and give her space, "You know, maybe we should do this right now. Considering this is the most you've said to me in the last couple days. So, let's talk. Right now."

The rest of the group--frozen--watched Brooke as she challenged her husband. Nathan could feel all eyes on them and he stepped forward, looking down at his wife, "Why are you acting like this, Brooke?"

"Me?" Brooke let out a frustrated chuckle, "Tell me, Nathan. Where were you today?"

"What?"

Brooke leaned in closer, her face no more than a few inches from his, "_Where. were. you. today_." This time, she didn't ask it as a question. She waited for a response she hoped wouldn't be what she dreaded.

Nathan firmly replied, "I went to see my mom."

In a swift move, Brooke hand came across his face, making a loud _slap_ sound that seemed to echo in the room. Their audience jumped. "_Don't_ lie to me, Nathan."

Nathan made a circular motion with his jaw, trying to recover from the slap, and looked back at her, "I'm not lyi--"

"Nathan, do you think I'm _stupid_?," Brooke began, her eyes starting to well with tears from anger, "Your mother's not even in Tree Hill. So if you miraculously flew to California to spend time with her and then come back here just in time for bed, then you better tell me right now where the hell you were tonight."

Nathan stared at his wife. He could remember the last time they were in this position--fighting and lying to each other. It was so long ago that it felt like another lifetime. But here he was again, in the exact same position--but this time it wasn't a friend pleading for honesty. It was his _wife_.

Brooke's voice began to soften, "Just _please_ tell me you didn't see Haley."

Their spectators remained quiet and Peyton fought the urge to stand up and engulf Brooke in her arms for comfort. But right now, that wasn't her job. It was Nathan's. That is, as long as he was telling her the truth. But from the looks of it--it was far from the truth.

Nathan's mouth began to open, but he couldn't bear to lie to her anymore. He could tell her the truth and it would ruin his marriage--or he could lie to her and ruin his marriage. _Damn_.

A single tear traced down Brooke's cheek as she back away from Nathan in shock and disappointment. "I--um...I gotta pick up Sophie." She whispered loud enough for the room to hear and she made her way to the living room to pick up the purse she'd set on the couch. All eyes followed her as she picked up her things, but Peyton's remained locked with Nathan's. He was looking back at her as her face expressed much more than disappointment--it was damn close to hate.

Nathan whirled around as Brooke fiddled with her keys on the way to the front door, "Brooke, come on--don't--"

"No, _Nathan_!" She turned around, one hand on the door knob, "This time, it's _my_ turn to walk away."


	5. Just For Tonight

**Author's Note:** I struggled writing this chapter, so hopefully it's up to par with the previous ones. It's not that long, but enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Four: Just For Tonight**

_**Hours earlier….**_

His daily run never failed to clear his mind of any concerns; waking up at 8am everyday and leaving his problems behind for an hour. Taking a detour on his usual route, he slowly halted at the sight of Karen's Café before his eyes. Opening the door, he greeted the woman in charge.

"Hey, Karen."

Her attention diverted from the coffee machine slowly ending its brew to the man on the other side of the counter, a grin plastered on his face, "Nathan! What a surprise. What brings you in here?"

"Oh, you know," he shrugged, as if the answer was already obvious, "grabbing something to drink. How've you been?"

She smiled, "Working as usual. Your uncle's out back if you wanna say hi."

"Nah," he held up a hand to stop her from retrieving him, "I'll just grab a drink and go." She handed him a bottled water, as well as a bag of Hawaiian Hazelnut coffee for Brooke, and she waved off the dollar he handed her.

"Tell your wife to stop by when she's not so busy. She promised to make me some dessert and I'm still waiting on it." Karen reminded him before her eyes turned to the customer that had walked in.

"Hey, Karen!" The cheerful voice caused Nathan to whirl around and come face to face with Haley once again. Her eyes met his momentarily before Karen engulfed her into a hug, "My _god_, Haley! Oh, it's been a really long time! I didn't know you were back in town."

Haley released herself from the embrace and placed both hands on Karen's shoulders, "God, Karen, it's so great to see you. I'm only here for a while taking care of family stuff."

"Well, it's nice to have you home even if it's only for a while." Karen shot her a smile and returned behind the counter, with Haley following the lead and taking a seat on the stool opposite from her.

Nathan was still standing there.

"So what can I get you?" Karen offered her a menu but Haley declined, "I'll have a few things to go if you don't mind. Just the usual." Karen nodded and retreated to the kitchen, leaving the two behind.

Haley waited for Karen to disappear before spinning the stool around to face Nathan, "Fancy seeing you here, Nate." Her eyes scanned his body, pausing at his muscular arms.

He shifted in his position, contemplated saying something to her, but turned his body to walk away. Walking down the steps of the café, the sound of Haley's voice chased after him, "Nathan."

"What?" He turned to look at her, discomfort written all over his face, "What do you want?"

"What crawled up your ass?" Nathan rolled his eyes and Haley placed a hand on her hip, "Okay, don't pretend like you weren't happy to see me. Otherwise, you would've walked out as soon as I walked in."

"Don't flatter yourself, Haley," He replied, "Like I said, what do you want?"

Haley shook her head at his hostility, and clapped her hands before holding them together in place in front of her, "I need to talk to you."

"We're talking." He pointed out, "But make it quick 'cause I don't have time for this."

"Ok, _seriously_, Nathan," She stepped closer to him, "Quit being a jackass for two seconds and listen to me." Nathan kept his mouth shut, but was clearly being impatient. "It's really important that you and I talk."

"About what?"

"About…" she paused, her eyes unable to keep steady from looking into his, "what happened four years ago."

His expression showed no recollection of what she meant and she stepped closer. Her eyes burned into his, begging to be recognized from the years prior, but Nathan showed no sign of it. Becoming irritated at the situation, Nathan stepped back and slowly began to turn away.

"Nathan, please," she walked after him, finding herself trying to keep up with his attempt to hurry away, "the least you can do is talk to me after you disappeared that night!"

"Look, Haley," he stopped in his tracks, "whatever scenario you have built in your head--it didn't _happen_, okay? So just back off and leave me alone."

"It didn't happen?" she scoffed, "Trust me, Nathan, if nothing happened I wouldn't be here right now asking you to have a decent conversation with me. _Something _happened," she placed a finger on his chest and continued with a firm voice, "now if you don't want me to go across the street to your wife's precious little store and tell _her _instead, you better pay the _hell _attention."

Nathan's eyes glanced at the Clothes Over Bros boutique opposite Karen's Café and then glared back at her, but he obeyed, "Then tell me."

"Not here," she removed her finger, "have dinner with me tonight and I'll tell you everything."

Nathan scoffed at the idea, but Haley's eyes reminded him of her threat, "You're serious?"

"Do I _look _like I'm joking?"

Everything inside of him wanted to burst into flames from his decision to agree with the dinner plans. Haley grinned in his acceptance and she placed a hand on his bicep before returning to the café. Nathan looked down at the ground for a few seconds before his body finally reminded him to start walking back home. He'd spent the entire walk trying to come up with a good enough reason to tell his wife he won't be home later that day, then slowly cursed himself for trying to come up with a _lie _to his wife. He made his way to the bedroom after putting away the bag of coffee he received from Karen, and sat on the bed, fiddling his fingers. On the night stand, he reached for his cell phone and sent Brooke a text message. _Well, that run achieved nothing._ Upon pressing the SEND button, he shut his phone before heading to the shower.

* * *

_**Present time**_

The clock struck midnight and two pairs of eyes looked at him, waiting for any type of explanation. He'd been sitting in the dining room for the last hour, a bottle of beer in his hand and a weight of guilt on his shoulders. On his left sat Peyton, who was tapping her fingers on the table, and watchful eyes on her best friend's husband. On his right, Dean watched Peyton's fingers tapping, slightly annoyed at the only sound that occupied the room. That and the occasional sigh from Nathan.

"Well," Dean started, turning his attention to Nathan, "it's been fun playing _silent-treatment-with-the-bad-husband_, but I think I'm gonna tap out." He stood up and straightened his shirt.

Peyton tightened her lips and raised both eyebrows at him, indicating she wanted to do the same, but Nathan suddenly spoke up.

"I'm an idiot."

Dean's eyebrow arched and he slowly took a seat once again, "Nevermind, I'll stay for this one.."

"No, seriously," Nathan leaned back against the wooden chair, still holding a beer in one hand, "I'm an idiot. I should get a pat on the back for being the biggest idiot ever."

Dean shrugged both shoulders and patted Nathan on the back. Peyton fought the urge to chuckle at the gesture, knowing full well Dean was trying to make light of the situation, but immediately caught herself. She looked back at Nathan, who was giving Dean a glare for actually patting him, "So why don't you tell us why you're an idiot, Nate."

"_Because_," his voice heightened, but he slowly lowered it, "I went to see Haley tonight and look what happened."

"_Why _did you see Haley?" Peyton leaned forward in curiosity, both hands clasped before her, waiting for Nathan's answer.

"I bumped into her at the café today and she said really needed to talk to me. So I met up with her for dinner, and I only planned to be there a few minutes--"

"Whoa, whoa," Dean interrupted, "you went out to dinner with your ex-girlfriend?! Can I give you repeated pats on the back?"

"Dean!" Peyton looked at him, "Let him talk." Dean held up his hands and urged Nathan to continue.

"Anyway," he sighed, "she said she had something really important to tell me. And…" Nathan shifted in his seat and took another drink, stalling before he could continue with the story.

Dean, clearly getting impatient, snapped his fingers, "_And_?"

Nathan held his head back, closed his eyes, and cursed anyone up there who could hear him.

* * *

**_Flashback_**

"All right, I'm here." Nathan made his presence known as he walked toward the table that Haley had been sitting at for the last ten minutes. She smiled back at him as she unfolded the linen napkin and placed it on her lap, "Oh, well, nice to see you too." Her eyes glanced at his outfit, he didn't even bother to dress up, compared to her. He'd simply thrown on a pair of basketball shorts and a Nike t-shirt, whereas she was decked out in a little black dress with a French updo to match. Clearly, he didn't care much for the event.

"So," he kept a firm voice and fixed his eyes on hers, "what's this all about?"

"Oh, well, there's just a lot of things we need to catch up on," she began, crossing her legs underneath the table, "like, for instance, your child."

Nathan's eyebrow arched in confusion. Why would she possibly care about his baby? "Sophie? Well, she just turned a year old over the weeken--"

Haley quickly interrupted him, "Not that one. Your _other _child."

Nathan looked as if he had hit been frozen in time, his eyes fixed on Haley's, and his movements completely stopped. He had to remind himself to keep breathing. She tilted her head slightly to the side and waited for his reply. He didn't make a move.

"Nathan?"

He shook his head to snap out of his trance and blinked his eyes, "I'm sor--, what?" He leaned forward and his voice softened, "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about," she leaned in closer, his face only a couple of inches from hers, "_our _daughter."

Nathan searched for any hint of lies in her eyes, but her face stayed serious and it only confused him even more. He slowly leaned back into his seat and narrowed his eyes at her previous words, his voice practically a whisper, "_Our _daughter?"

"Mmhmm," she licked her lips, bit her bottom lip before beginning to clarify to the dumbfounded man before her, "Four years ago, Nate. Does it ring a bell?"

His eyes scanned the table between them, trying to recall the last few years. No more than a few seconds later, he immediately shut his eyes at the memory and he shook his head. Taking a deep breath he pushed his chair back slowly and returned his eyes to Haley, "I gotta go."

"_What_?" Haley raised her voice, "No, Nathan, don't walk away from this! You need to know about her!"

Various patrons in the restaurant turned their attention to the pair, and Nathan's eyes looked around the room as Haley pleaded for him to stay. "She's your daughter, Nath--"

He quickly stood up from his chair and walked off, leaving Haley sitting with all the attention on her. She took a deep breath and let out a frustrated sigh, placing one elbow on the table, and her head strategically onto the palm of her hand.

**_End flashback_**

* * *

Peyton's eyes widened. Nathan attempted to avoid looking at her. Dean shook his head, "Dude, no wonder you were at the River Court."

Nathan turned to him and without saying a word, Dean got the hint that it wasn't the right time to make any more jokes. Peyton's voice quivered as she began to open her mouth, "Is it true, Nathan?"

He looked into her eyes, finding it difficult to look away regardless of the tears that began to form. Tears that were meant for her best friend; tears that expressed the disappointment she had in the man she used to be proud of. Dean could only watch them as his mind wandered to the effects of Nathan's actions on Brooke.

"I don't know," Nathan's voice was down to a whisper. Looking at Peyton right now reminded him of the way Brooke looked at him, and it damn near broke his heart once more, "I just--I messed up. It was a long time ago--"

"Nathan," she stopped him, placing a hand on his arm that had found itself closer to her on the table, "look, you're like a brother to me. And you know how much I love you, and trust me, I know all about mistakes. But it's not _me _you need to explain this to." Her eyes blinked away tears as he pulled away from her touch, glancing at Dean who simply nodded in agreement with Peyton.

"Go home to your wife, man. Fix it."

* * *

There was nothing more frightening to Nathan than facing his wife after the events of the night unraveled in his head. Standing outside their bedroom, he stared at the door, wishing everything that had happened in the last few days were just a figment of his imagination. Wishing his stupidity from years prior had never occurred. He closed his eyes and hung his head in shame, but the sound of the door opening interrupted his self-torture.

Brooke stood in front of him, clutching her arms that desperately held onto herself, and her lips quivered at his presence. Her eyes had finally dried from crying, and the evidence of puffy eyes displayed on her face. Nathan's heart ached at her appearance, desperate to reach out and touch her; but his body failed to respond to his needs.

She slowly walked away from the door and returned to the bed. He followed her, closing the door behind him, and he entered the darkness as she settled herself in the bed. He claimed the position next to hers and she turned her body towards him, nestling her head in the familiar spot on his chest. He stroked her hair with one hand, listening to her slowly breathe.

"Brooke--" He began.

"Ssh," Her voice was in a soft whisper, "Just for tonight, Nathan. Please."

He complied, settling his head comfortably in his pillow, looking up at the ceiling. Her hand was slowly tracing his abdomen, in tune with his stroking of her hair. He pulled her closer to him, wanting every inch of their bodies to be in contact with one another. She obliged and rested her body against his. They were exactly where they wanted to be. In this moment, their troubles escaped them.

Even if it was just for tonight.


	6. All These Things That I've Done

_**Author's Note:**__ I'm sorry this took forever. I had major writer's block and I decided to write another fic. But this chapter goes back in time. Everything in this story takes place four years prior. So the drama is a little toned down here, or a lot toned down. I figured, there wasn't much Brathan fluff, so here ya'll go. _

_**Chapter Five: All These Things That I've Done**_

* * *

_**Four years ago…**_

Nathan Scott shared a high-five with Dean Winchester after arriving at the crowded bar in New York City. Dean found himself with a beer in one hand and a pool cue in the other, arrogantly challenging those too drunk to actually win. Nathan received a few 'Congratulations' from a few customers and fellow basketball players, even a couple of free drinks from the bartender.

Yep, this was his night. The draft took place in New York this year and he'd been selected by the Charlotte Bobcats as their new small forward. After getting off the phone with his girlfriend, Brooke Davis, who squealed with excitement, he and Dean headed to LASH to celebrate.

The two shared an avid passion for basketball, meeting at the prestigious High Flyers camp sometime in high school. Although both played college ball together in Duke, Nathan went on to be drafted to the NBA while Dean pursued a career in law enforcement after a knee injury put an end to his basketball career.

"Man, you are one lucky son of a _bitch_." Dean boasted, taking a drink of his beer and tapping the pool cue lightly on Nathan's back.

"What can I say? I'm blessed." Nathan replied and received an eye roll from his friend

"Yeah, don't forget about us little people when you hit it big," Dean reminded him, cocking an eyebrow.

Nathan smiled and nodded, "Whatever, man. You better keep in touch when you get to L.A."

"Sure, man," Dean gestured for Nathan to grab a pool cue, "just don't forget to give me court side tickets when you come out there so I can get a good view of you getting your ass whooped."

Nathan let out a dry laugh as he grabbed a stick and waited for Dean to rack up the balls. His eyes watched three striped balls go in the pockets after Dean broke, and glancing at his friend, he had a cocky smirk on his face.

Half an hour into their second game--Dean clearly winning the first round--a blond waitress strolled up to the newly acquired Bobcat. Taking a beer from her tray, she handed it to him with a sly smirk, "Here you go, hot shot. Courtesy of the blonde by the bar."

Nathan accepted the drink and quickly turned his sights to the crowded bar, where a petite blonde wore a navy blue dress that complemented her so well. Narrowing his eyes, he'd immediately realized that it was in fact Haley James.

He couldn't decide whether he was happy or shocked to see her, but by the time he'd made up his mind, she was inches from him and pulling him in for a hug. He followed suit and wrapped his arms around her before pulling apart.

"Well, well," Haley began, a hand to her cheek in admiration, "Nathan Scott."

He grinned and shook his head, "Haley, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know," she waved a hand aimlessly, "trying to catch a break from all the paperwork that awaits me at home."

His lack of response cued her in his confusion and she quickly clarified, "I'm a teacher at a high school few blocks from here. Finals was last week so I have a slew of research papers to tend to that I'm just trying to avoid."

He nodded in understanding, catching Dean's attempts to get his attention behind Haley. She followed Nathan's eyes and landed on Dean, who gave a lame wave and a smile. She waved a simple hello and turned back to Nathan, "Don't mind him. He's a buddy of mine."

"I can see that," she chuckled, "so I believe Congratulations are in order."

"Thanks," he ran a hand through his hair, hoping his nervousness wouldn't show. He hadn't seen her in so long--she left Tree Hill in the middle of their senior year and no one had been able to reach her. Now, four years later, she was standing in front of him--exchanging words as if they'd never part ways.

It took only a few minutes for her to coax him to take a seat with her at a table and he complied when he noticed Dean flirting with a busty redhead. Sitting across from her, a waitress handed Haley another drink before she spoke again, "So how has life been for you, Nathan Scott? That is, besides getting drafted and all."

Nathan shrugged, "Life's been good to me. Still living in Tree Hill, and never really thought of leaving."

A slight scoff escaped from Haley, "Tree Hill. Hmm. I guess my life never really turned out the way I wanted it to."

"How so?"

She waved a hand, "Oh, you know. Staying in Tree Hill. Music career. You know," she shrugged, conveniently avoiding his eyes, "you."

Nathan barely nodded. He watched as she shifted in her seat and continued the conversation, "So what happened? You left in the middle of senior year and nobody really heard from you again."

"Well," she leaned back in her seat to be more comfortable, "I ended up here with my sister Quinn, finished out my senior year and got into teaching. After getting on my own two feet, I moved out and have been living in Manhattan ever since. I know I lost touch with people, but I'm sure you can understand that. I wasn't really the most…accepted person when I came back from that tour. And things never really became normal for me."

"I understand," he replied.

"But I mean, I had Lucas this entire time. He was the one person I could talk to about anything so we do keep in touch."

"Yeah, well, Lucas had a hard time when you left. It's not like I gave too much of a damn, but," He hesitated before saying her name, considering the circumstances of the last time they saw each other, "Brooke thought he should have someone to be able to talk to. Who better than his brother, right?"

Haley chuckled, quickly dismissing the mention of her name, "I've heard. Lucas told me all about it, how you suddenly went from asshole Nathan to little brother Nathan. He appreciated it though, as much as he was weirded out by it."

Nathan couldn't help but laugh. It wasn't the most comfortable situation for him back then, but he didn't have too much of a choice when Brooke made the decision. The two continued to catch up on talking, with Nathan stealing glances at Dean who was locked up in the corner of the room with the same redhead. Beer after beer, Nathan and Haley caught up on the last few years since high school graduation. Eventually, they ended up back at Haley's place after she insisted on having a 'quieter environment' to talk some more.

The conversation ended in bed without any mention of Brooke Davis.

--

The next morning, Brooke Davis stirred in her sleep as her alarm rang. The thought of all the meetings she had to deal with that day ran through her mind and she groaned. Sitting up, she decided to check if Nathan's flight was on schedule to arrive by lunch, giving her an excuse to skip half of the meetings for the rest of the day and rather spend it with him.

Her blackberry sat on the nightstand and she reached over to dial his number. Reaching his voicemail, she left a message:

"_Hey, baby. I was just wondering what time your flight comes in so I can come get you myself rather than send a driver. Thought it might be a good idea to relieve myself of the headaches I usually get at these corporate meetings, so give me a call once you wake up from that hangover from celebrating. And tell Dean I miss him! Love you."_

Hanging up the phone, she retreated into the bathroom to start her day.

--

"Fuck!" Nathan's voice startled Haley as she felt him practically fall out of bed. She turned to face him and found him fumbling to put on his clothes, cursing about being stupid and being late.

"Hey," she spoke up in a soft voice. Her heart sank when he shot her a look full of regret and shook his head.

She knew he thought this was the biggest mistake of his life. She knew the alcohol had taken over his inhibitions and slept with her. She knew he wouldn't be staying. She knew he'd be with someone else and she might never see him again.

She knew as soon as he walked out the door without saying a word to her.

--

Dean fiddled with his fingers as he sat with his elbows to his knees, waiting for his flight to be boarded. Nathan sat next to him, skimming through the missed calls and listening to only the important voice mails. He hadn't said much in the last couple of hours, and Dean didn't question him. Nathan grew anxious as he went through each voicemail, and hearing Brooke's voice broke his heart. He'd just slept with another woman while his girlfriend was back home, waiting to be in his arms again. Putting the phone down to send a text message, he replied by telling her when his flight would arrive. After sending it, Dean looked over at his friend and broke the silence.

"Is that Brooke?"

Nathan glanced up, "Yeah, she wants to pick me up and skip work."

"Hmm," Dean shifted his eyes from Nathan to the crowd in front of him, "you gonna sit there and drown in your misery or you gonna tell me why you came stumbling back to your hotel room this morning?"

Nathan shook his head, knowing full well Dean knew what happened; he practically _invented _sleeping around with women. But he knew Dean wouldn't be handing over high-fives about this. Brooke was the type of girl you should never do this type of stuff with; _especially _the second time around.

"I messed up, what else can I say?"

Dean reached over and punched Nathan in the shoulder, "You're a real dick, you know that? This, I can definitely understand if it was me. But that's _me_. I don't have a beautiful woman to go home to who loves me to death and isn't waiting to be in my arms. I didn't expect this from you, man."

Nathan inhaled and sighed deeply, feeling a little out of place considering he's usually lecturing Dean about how fragile a woman heart is and to be careful with who he sleeps around with. So, this, Dean couldn't even swallow.

As if on cue, Nathan's phone rang and his immediate reflex was to answer it. Cursing himself after realizing who called, he slowly held it up to his ear and listened to her voice.

"Hey, Nate. Wha--"

"Look, Haley. What happened last night was a big mistake. It should've never happened. I love Brooke and she's the only important person in my life. So none of this means anything, none of this is even close to meaning anything. Just….don't call me, okay?"

"Nath--!"

He flipped his phone closed and turned it off. Placing his head in his hands again, he berated himself as Dean watched him, asking who she was to begin with.

"She's an ex-girlfriend. Remember the chick who went on tour?"

"Ah, the ultimatum girl." Dean shook his head, "Well, you fucked up, it's done. All you gotta do now is redeem yourself. And I know this is outrageous coming from me, but you need to tell Brooke."

"Are you insane?!" Nathan's head shot up and glared at him, "If I tell Brooke, this is all over. Everything! You're fuckin' out of your mind, man."

"Well, sorry," Dean held his hands up, "but I'm not the one who screwed my ex-girlfriend while I have someone waiting--"

"I get it!" Nathan snapped back. His mind drifted to the previous night, hoping to God it was all a dream. Hoping he could go back and erase everything that happened between him and Haley. The loud speaker announced its boarding for the Los Angeles departure and Dean stood up slowly, holding his duffel bag in his hand.

"Go home to your girlfriend, man. Fix it."

--

He stood at the baggage claim, carefully eyeing the luggage that slowly passed him by. The sound of her voice almost made his knees weak as he turned to find his brunette girlfriend staring back at him, her dimples proudly shown on her cheek. He reached out for her as she wrapped him in a welcoming hug.

"Oh, god," she sighed, "I missed you so much."

He couldn't help but chuckle, "I missed you too, you know that. But I was only gone for a week."

She pulled back and slapped his arm, "A week is too long! I was miserable at work with all these conferences and trips and other crap I decided not to do."

"Brooke," Nathan shook his head, "you can't just skip all of these things because you don't feel like going. It's your dream to have this compa--"

"Exactly," she cut him off, placing a hand on his chest, "which is exactly why I can do whatever I want. Besides, I've got it covered. Lisa's my right-hand man for a reason. She can handle it." She nodded towards the baggage carousel that had his navy blue Duke University bag and he turned to retrieve it.

Dropping it by his side and walking together to the limo that waited for them, he placed an arm around her shoulder, "So got any plans today?"

"I dunno," she pretended to contemplate, leaning her head on his arm, "I was actually planning on spending the day with my boyfriend who recently got drafted by the Bobcats, but he's nowhere to be found. So I guess you'll have to do."

His hand squeezed her shoulder and she let out a giggle as he shook his head and laughed. They made their way inside the limo and before they could get comfortable, a '911' phone call from Lisa came through on Brooke's blackberry. With a hesitant groan, she picked it up and calmed down the frantic woman on the line.

He watched her as she tucked some loose hair behind her ear and grinned at him periodically as she continued to speak to Lisa. Those dimples, that smile, the way her hair fell on her face whenever she turned to face him, the way her perfume had a light smell of sweet pea, and the way she held out one hand to grasp his, assuring him she'll end the phone call as soon as she can. He turned to his right and looked out the window, vowing to himself that Brooke will never find out about his mistake.

--

"You…_suck_."

Brooke scoffed and placed both hands on her hips, "_Excuse _me? I think that was a pretty close game."

"Oh yeah?" Nathan challenged her, "You think 11-5 is a close game?" He tucked the ball under his arm as he walked towards her.

"It was better than 11-3 last time. And besides, I'm a fashion designer, not a basketball player."

"Yeah, but you don't take kickboxing for nothing. I thought you'd be able to beat my ass."

"Okay, _genius_," she snatched the ball away from him and held it against her, "first of all, kickboxing relieves stress for me and it teaches me to protect myself when necessary. Second of all, I _could _beat your ass if you tried to _attack _with me a basketball, not play a game with it."

"Same difference," he picked up the water bottle next to her feet and took a drink, "another game?"

"In a few minutes," she took the ball and placed it on the ground, balancing herself as she sat on it and adjusted her pony tail, "I'm glad I skipped work today. And the last week.. I haven't been able to just relax, you know? It's nice."

"And the added bonus of having me here, of course." Nathan smirked as he placed himself next to her.

"Oh, you flatter yourself, Nathan Scott," she rolled her eyes, "But I'm serious. Sometimes, I feel like…I just wanna be _young_, you know? I'm 22 years old and I'm running this million dollar company and as much as it's my dream come true, it's just so fast and so overwhelming sometimes that I feel like I'm missing out on my life…on a young person's life."

"So you'd rather drink and party than be a successful fashion design-slash-millionaire?" He was trying to make light of the conversation, but she ignored his comment. She had a tendency to do this whenever she had the chance to just sit back and think, but Nathan tried to avoid the negative thoughts and focused on her being successful in life. Something he was so proud that she achieved, something she loved and dreamed of since she was younger.

"It's different with you, babe. You get to _play_. I have to sketch, and design, and go to meetings, and yell at people for putting size 0 models on the cover of my magazine…"

Nathan placed a hand on her knee, "Hey, I bust my ass too, you know. Remember all those suicides Whitey would make us do? On top of all the other crap he put us through? It's not always fun, but it's what I love. And I know this is what _you _love."

"Of course I love what I do. But I guess that's the price you pay when you're so talented, huh?" She gave him a flirty smile and wriggled her eyebrows.

"You flatter yourself, Brooke Davis. Come here." He pulled her closer to him and she found herself kneeling between his legs as they both stayed on the concrete of the River Court. He brushed off the bangs on her forehead and she pulled him in for a kiss.

"I love you, you know that?"

Nathan grinned and looked into her hazel-eyes, "Hmm, you could remind me." She made a face at him and he pulled her in for another kiss. He placed a hand under her chin as he deepened the kiss and whispered back, "I love you, too."

--

_**Four months later….**_

Nathan stepped into the locker room as he flung his towel over his shoulder and headed towards his locker. Taking off his jersey, he tossed it on the bench behind him and grabbed another towel in his locker to ready himself for a shower.

Training camp had started and he's spent the last couple of weeks in Charlotte impressing the coaches so he could be one of the players that actually step on the court, not be part of the bench mafia. In the process, he'd gotten closer with a few of his teammates; some he'd admired from years prior, and others who was just as new as he was.

"Hey, man, you free tonight?"

Nathan turned to his left and found his teammate, Kenny Jones, taking a seat on the bench next to him. Kenny was drafted right after Nathan, coming from West Virginia University as a shooting guard, and the two developed a really close relationship despite knowing each other for a week.. That, and they used to play against each other in college basketball.

Nathan shrugged and shut his locker, "Can't, man. I gotta get back home tonight."

"Ah, come on, " Kenny nudged him, "some of the guys are going out to a bar tonight to celebrate being a Bobcat."

"I think I'm done with bars for now," Nathan replied, his last celebration in a bar flashed through his mind, "Besides, I really do have to get to New York. Brooke had a fashion show tonight and I promised her I'd be there for the after-party."

Kenny tweaked a brow, "Oh, your fashion mogul girlfriend? I guess if you're gonna ditch your boys, might as well be for a hot chick--"

"Hey!"

"What, man?" Kenny held his hands up and grinned, "She _is _fiiiine, though. I dunno what she's doing with a chump like you." Nathan shook his head and laughed as Kenny opened his own locker to retrieve his things, "So I guess I'll see you sometime next week."

"Yeah. Have fun tonight. I gotta catch a flight in a couple of hours." Kenny slapped him on the back before leaving the locker room and Nathan headed to the shower stalls.

The after-party for Brooke's spring fashion line was held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York, and hosted by Vanity Fair. The show was a success and everyone that came out raved about her clothing line and its young and fresh concept. In the room full of crowded people, Brooke Davis stood in the sidelines, watching everything go by.

"Brookie!" A silver-haired woman approached her, wearing an outfit similar to 1920's attire and Brooke cringed at the name…and the clothes. "Oh, darling, your clothes are absolutely divine! My daughter is such a great fan, she only wears Clothes Over Bros. It's so refreshing to see young talent in the fashion business. Here, let me introduce you."

"Oh, um," Brooke held up a hand, "I'm actually waiting for someone right here and if I move, he won't find me. And my cell phone isn't exactly getting any signal so maybe later on?" She showed her best fake cheery smile and the woman waved off a hand and walked away to reach for another cocktail being passed around by waiters.

She sighed and tapped her foot impatiently as her arms were crossed against her chest, showing a fake smile whenever someone acknowledged her clothing line. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful, but she was bored. Everyone praising her for being so _young_ and successful, yet she felt anything but. There were times when she wanted to just walk away from it all, but Nathan never let her. He was her biggest cheerleader when it came to this, and that's all she needed right now. Her watch showed 11:35pm and she continued to wait impatiently.

"Look, over there, over there--that's Nathan Scott!" The photographer a few feet in front of her signaled his assistant to run towards the entrance and Brooke whirled to find Nathan being hounded by more photographers. His face showed no interest in pictures, and Brooke ran to him and pulled him from all the commotion as the flashes continued to surround them.

"Well, I guess I can't really surprise you, huh?"

Brooke laughed and planted a kiss on his lips before she spoke, "I guess not. What took you so long?"

"Practice ran late. Flight was delayed. You know how that goes." He placed his arms around her, landing on the small of her back as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "How did everything go?"

"Oh, it was absolutely divine," she mimicked the older woman from earlier, "But I'm bored and I just wanna get out of here."

"What? Brooke, this is all for you."

"Oh, please, no one's even gonna notice I left. Look at all these people. You'd think that since the night is about me, they'd actually _talk _to me, but no. They wave, they smile, they say things I've already heard hundreds of times, they suck up to me--it just gets boring. I think maybe I need something new?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, something that could be for everyone. All these people talk about is how my line is fresh and young and every teenager or someone in their early 20s would wear it. But what about everyone else?"

"So you think you're bored because your line isn't as broad as you'd like it to be?"

Brooke sighed and leaned her head against his chest, "I guess. I still just wanna get out of here."

"You sure? Last chance to back out."

"Oh, trust me. I'm ready to go." Nathan nodded and he held her hand, guiding her to the exit towards the back, away from all the photographers. She called for her limo and it arrived shortly, taking them to her penthouse a few blocks away.

Making their way to her door, he quickly grabbed her hand and pulled her in. She narrowed her eyes in curiosity as he leaned down to give her a quick kiss. "What was that for?"

"Just because." She smiled and turned back around as she inserted the key and opened the door, revealing candles that lit up her living room. As she walked in, white flower petals were all over the floor as bouquets of flowers were lined up against the skyline view of her windows. Brooke stopped in the middle of it all and turned around to see Nathan behind her, with a smile on his face.

"What's going on?"

He shrugged and made his way towards her, "I just thought I'd do something nice for a change."

Her raspy chuckle escaped her lips and she pulled him in for a hug, "Oh, honey, this _is _nice. I _love _it. It's beautiful."

"I'm glad you think so." He released himself from her embrace and clapped his hands, "Opie!"

She searched around the room for her dog, the golden retriever he'd gotten her back in high school and the one she left behind in Tree Hill at Peyton's while she was in New York.

"Nathan, what are you doing? Opie's in Tree Hill, remember?"

"Not really." He replied nonchalantly, and in a few seconds, the dog was walking towards them and made its way to Brooke. She knelt down and hugged the dog, "You brought Opie here to surprise me? Nathan, we were gonna come home this weekend, you know."

"I know, but--"

"_Ohmygod_." Nathan's smile grew even bigger as Brooke's hand held a box that hung around Opie's collar. She stood up and looked at him and her eyebrows furrowed at the realization before he took the box off the collar and knelt down in front of her, holding the box in his hand.

Brooke gasped and placed a hand to cover her mouth as Nathan reached for the other, "I guess life has a funny way of bringing two people together who never thought they'd be in love. We've known each other our whole lives; you're my best friend, you're my lover, and you're the one I want to tell my grandchildren about. I can't imagine a day without you by my side and I couldn't have asked for anyone else to have with me when my dreams came true. You're the reason I know what love is all about--and I want to spend the rest of my life making sure you feel every bit of happiness that you give me."

He held her hand tighter as tears began to flow down her cheeks, "Brooke Davis, will you spend the rest of your life with me?"

She broke out into a laugh as she nodded repeatedly, "Yes…oh my god, Nathan, yes!" Realizing he hadn't opened the box, he laughed and showed it to her: a round solitaire that was set on a band of diamonds, gorgeous enough to give Harry Winston a run for his money. He placed the ring on her finger and she giggled with excitement as he stood up and hugged her tightly. She admired the ring over his shoulder as they continued with the embrace and released herself to give him a kiss so passionate that Opie decided it was his cue to leave the room.

Brooke finally caught her breath and stepped back, looking at the ring and back to Nathan, "You were wrong, Nathan." The confused look on his face urged her to continue, "You _always _surprise me."

--

Haley James sat in her apartment located in Manhattan. The sunset cast a beautiful array of lights through her window as she tapped one hand softly on the table, the other holding a cell phone. Her mind raced, her palms were beginning to sweat…and her eyes stayed fixated on the pregnancy test that lay in front of her. It wasn't really the first one she'd used; truthfully, it was probably the seventh. Two more after the doctor confirmed it himself. But hey, she wanted to make sure.

Her finger scrolled through the phone book of her cell phone, first landing on 'Mom'. She gave a half-hearted smile at the idea of calling her first, and receiving an enthusiastic 'Congratulations!' from her, but the smile faded when she remembered the current situation: pregnant and unmarried, or better yet--_single_. What would her mother _think_?

She continued to scroll until the next highlighted name landed on 'Nathan'. Images of a happy family scoured her mind, but the reality sunk in sooner than she'd hoped. Scrolling back up, it finally landed on the one person she could count on the most. Without any further hesitation, she called.

He didn't pick up. Just as well, he was probably busy coming up with ways to better the basketball team he coached. Before placing her phone back down on the table, it suddenly rang and 'Lucas' was displayed on the screen.

"Hey, stranger."

"Luke." Haley's voice was practically a whisper. She hadn't spoken to him in a few months, and the reason she called wasn't exactly to see how he was doing…although not out of the question. She was scared about what Lucas would think of her; this was her best friend who stood by her no matter what. She didn't know if this would include "no matter what."

"Hales? Sorry, I didn't pick up right away. Just got out of the shower." Lucas was shuffling in the background as he tried to get his attention back to the phone call. "What's up?"

"Lucas, I know we haven't kept in touch in the last couple months, but--there's something I have to tell you."

"Haley," his voice sounded reassuring, "you're my best friend. You could disappear for years and that would never change. You know you can tell me anything."

She found herself smiling at the security he made her feel. It was now or never, and truthfully, there's no one else she could imagine telling it to. She took a deep breath and let the words roll out of her mouth, "I'm pregnant."


	7. Someone To Save You

_**Author's Note: **__I know it's been a while since the last chapter. But here's the next one. I like to think it's pretty long so it should be good for a few days until my muse comes back to me. Enjoy._

* * *

**Chapter Seven: Someone To Save You**

_**Present Time**_

Brooke stood at the entrance of the gym, clutching her bag in one hand and rubbing the palm of her other hand with her fingers as the sweat slowly formed on her skin. She'd driven two and a half hours to get here, and backing out would make it all a waste. Her hand slowly pushed it open and she heard the loud creak that it made, alerting the man in the middle of the room to his company.

Her high heels made a clacking sound against the hardwood floor and all nervousness washed over her as she approached him. He turned to face her, both hands on his hips with curiosity of her presence, and tilted his head when he realized who it was.

"Brooke _Scott_." His voice welcoming her, and a smile crept up on his face when her dimples made an appearance.

"Hey, Luke." She slowly approached him and wrapped her arms around her former boyfriend. She sighed at his touch and stepped back, her smile slowly turning into a blank stare.

"Trouble on the home front, from what I've heard."

She arched an eyebrow at his guess, "And how'd you hear about it?"

"My brother told me. He said the couch was giving him back pains…" He trailed off, as Brooke shook her head at the image.

"We have a spare room; he _chose_ to sleep on the couch." She waved her hand as if it was a ridiculous idea and he chuckled, "It's not my fault."

"So when are you gonna stop punishing him?" He gestured with one hand for the two to sit on the bleachers and she obliged, sitting beside him.

"I'm not…_punishing_ him, per se. I just don't want to be in the same room as him right now."

"Right now has lasted about five days. What's the harm in talking to him?"

She rolled her eyes, "Oh, I don't know, maybe because he keeps lying every time he opens his mouth. He went to see Haley, you know? I'm supposed to just let that go?"

"No," he clasped both hands and glanced down on the floor, then back to her, "But talking about it with him might help. This isn't like you to just give up—"

"I'm not _giving up_, Lucas," she quickly corrected, her voice sounding stern, "I'm just disappointed. And _pissed_. My husband lied to me and saw her behind my back and I'm supposed to be okay with it? I can't do that, Luke. Not the second time around, especially not as a married woman."

Lucas sighed, knowing she'd meant the past when he and Peyton snuck around behind her back. "Do you know why he went to see her?"

She simply shrugged at the question and he placed an arm around her shoulder, "Look, Brooke. Nathan loves you, and I'm sure you know that. He wouldn't be unfaithful to you…not my brother. Not something as sacred as marriage. He's loyal to you, and Sophie. So maybe it wouldn't hurt to give him the benefit of the doubt and just talk to him."

It was as simple as that. But for her, it seemed like the hardest thing to do. She didn't know why it was hard for her to face him about seeing Haley; a part of her remembered the infamous triangle with her best friend and now brother-in-law. She wasn't sure if she would be able to take it if Nathan had done the same thing.

--

"You know, I should start charging you for all the beer and food you keep taking from my fridge."

Nathan shook his head at the comment as he took a drink of his beer. Dean sat on the sofa beside him, turning on the television. "Don't you have a house?"

"I have a wife too but she's not talking to me."

"Don't forget your daughter." Dean added and flipped the channel, landing on an episode of Oprah. Nathan's eyes narrowed in annoyance when Dean put the remote down, clearly enjoying the program. "Take her advice, she's pretty good at this type of stuff."

"I hardly think ways to get out of bankruptcy will help. Why the hell are you watching this anyway?"

"I'm just hoping you'd leave eventually."

Nathan began to stood up, putting down the beer bottle on the coffee table and emitting a loud sound from it, "Fine."

Dean didn't turn his head, but sensed Nathan had reached the front door, "I hope you're going home to talk to your wife."

"I would," Nathan began, opening the door, "but she left town." At the last word, Nathan slammed the door shut, causing Dean to jump at the sound. He sighed as the sound of footsteps approached him from behind.

"Why is Nathan thrashing around in the driveway?"

"_What_?" Dean quickly whirled around at the sound of Rae's voice, partly showing concern for his friend. But ultimately, showing more concern for his Impala.

Rae placed a hand on his shoulder for reassurance, "Don't worry, he's nowhere near your _baby_. And, by the way, I _did_ have a good day. Thanks for asking."

Dean pulled her down for a quick kiss and smiled, "And why are you home early? I thought you wouldn't be home 'til after the store closed."

"Brooke told me to close early today. We kinda had a talk over the phone for about an hour. She's really irritated at this whole Haley situation." She took her place next to him on the sofa, but quickly stiffened when she remembered her first question upon entering the room.

"Wait, why _is_ Nathan thrashing around in the driveway?"

Dean groaned and stood up, walking outside to find his friend cursing at the sky for having a miserable life. He walked up to Nathan and shoved him, causing him to attempt to catch his balance while in an intoxicated state. "Dude, what the hell!"

"Quit being a bitch and go home, man! You really think yelling at the sky is gonna solve your problems?"

Nathan took a swing at him, but Dean quickly ducked and shoved Nathan again. His face expressed frustration and he attempted another swing at Dean, "What do you know about problems, huh?! You have a fucking great life, Dean Win_chester_. You've never made a damn mistake in your life! You've never had to go through anything like this!"

Dean could feel his face get warm as his friend yelled in his face. He shoved Nathan again, this time, causing Nathan to fall back on the grass. "Don't give me this bullshit, Nate. You know _damn well_ my life would've been different if I never made mistakes. You fucking think that I _wanted_ this knee injury to shut me out of my dream!? You think I enjoyed being in therapy and having the doctor tell me I'd never be able to play professional basketball ever again?! You self-centered, son of a _bitch_!"

"Dean—"

"Fuck _you_, Nate! I would've been playing pro ball if I'd just walked away! But I took a swing at him, all because he said _you_ would never make it into the NBA. My dream is over because he took that bat and bashed my knee! My dream is fucking over because I stuck up for you! So you wanna talk about problems?! My life isn't even close to how fucked up you _think_ yours is. My knee isn't gonna be the way it used to, but at least your marriage can still be fixed!"

Nathan sat on the grass, looking down at the greenery and avoiding Dean's eyes. He felt like the biggest idiot ever, forgetting about the night Dean suffered a major fracture to his knee. He placed his head in his hands and could hear Dean sighing, putting his hands in his jacket pocket.

"I'm sorry."

Dean scoffed and shifted his eyes to the street, still furious at Nathan's actions. He'd spent the last week going over to Dean and Rae's house, spending the day there only to go home at night to sleep on the couch, late enough so that he wouldn't wake the baby…and Brooke. At this point, Dean had had enough. It was one thing to have marriage problems, it's another to continue to sulk over it.

"I'm n…I didn't say those things to get your pity, man. 'Cause as much as it was a stupid thing to do, I would've done it all over again."

Nathan looked up and confusion grew on his face, "You would have your knee bashed in again?"

"Well," Dean shrugged, "maybe I'd start running before the bat came into play."

Nathan couldn't help but laugh a little, assured that the hostility had surpassed them. Dean lightly kicked his leg and he took it as a cue to stand up. Brushing off the grass from his shorts, he cleared his throat, "I guess I've worn out my welcome."

"Longest five days of my life, man." Dean joked, "But no, it's not that. You know you're always welcome at my place, but you gotta work things out with Brooke first."

"I would if she could stand being in the same room with me for more than five seconds."

"You can figure it out. My point is, _just go home and do something about it_."

"Go home and tell her I slept with Haley and now we have a kid together?"

Dean's lips tightened at his question and he shrugged one shoulder, "Okay, _maybe_…you can ease that part in when she's not as angry."

"Right, when she's not throwing me out on my ass for making a stupid mistake four years ago."

"Look, man," Dean began, taking a deep breath, "You did what you did and it's done. Tell Brooke about it, go through the hell that comes with telling her the truth, _pray _that she'll forgive you, and move on from there. And you leave all this Haley James business up to me."

--

"Can I ask why you're at the university when it's not even basketball season? Please don't tell me you're turning into your father, wondering what could've been."

Lucas chuckled, but cringed at the thought, "I hope I never get near that pathetic."

"So how come I'm finding you here and not at your mom's?"

"Because," he leaned back in his chair, taking in the view of the town from his apartment balcony, "this is home to me."

"Lucas," her raspy voice showing concern, "you know Tree Hill is your home. _We're_ your home."

Lucas continued to look out and admire the view, but tilted his head slightly towards her, "Home…was never the same since Haley left. And you and--"

"Nathan got together?" Brooke finished his sentence. She remembered how difficult the situation became that one summer. No one accepted her relationship with Nathan at first, except Peyton, who'd known their history as children. For Lucas, he was losing who he'd considered the one that got away. For Haley, the one she gave her heart to fell in love with someone else. And everyone else figured it would be a short-lived fling with the cheerleader and basketball star.

Lucas didn't want to open any old wounds so he attempted to end the topic, "I'm just glad you're happy."

Brooke scoffed at the statement, but mentally took it back when she'd realized what she'd done. Despite the recent events, she truly was happy with Nathan. "I just want things to get better, you know? I want to not have the feeling of punching him in the face when he walks by."

Lucas laughed and she let out a raspy chuckle, "At least we know how you truly feel." He reached over to her and held her hand, stroking the back of it with his thumb, "It'll get better, Brooke. I'm sure this was all a misunderstanding and Nathan saw her for reasons that you thought otherwise. You two always manage to work things out anyway. So let him talk without throwing punches and I'm sure you guys will get past this. He loves you and he would never do anything to betray that." Although meaning every word he said, he found it difficult to spit out the last sentence.

"I know. Every part of me knows that, but I'm still a little on edge about Haley coming home. You know, she actually went into my store and tried to look for a dress?" She asked, Lucas attempting to make a surprised face, "_Yeah_. She was probably trying to find something to wear when she saw Nathan." She hissed out the words and cringed at the thought. "The bitch has nerve."

"Hey, that's my best friend you're talking about," Lucas politely defended, but only received an eye roll from the brunette.

"Yeah, but I'm your sister-in-law, so I _win_." She retorted playfully, as she reached over and jokingly punched his shoulder. His mouth formed an 'O' as he sat up straighter and she immediately knew his intentions. She was already laughing before he could get his hands on her sides to tickle her as she tried to fight back.

--

Nathan shook his head as the little girl before him giggled while he changed her diaper. He finished snapping the buttons close on her shorts and picked her up, giving her Eskimo kisses as he made his way from the nursery to the living room downstairs.

The smell of food cooking from the kitchen filled the air and he took the scent in as he flopped down on the sofa to turn on the television. Peyton walked over to the two, holding a spoon in her hand, "Here, is it too salty?"

Nathan tasted the sauce she'd offered him on a spoon and licked his lips, "It's perfect. What is it?"

Peyton laughed, "Oh, thanks. You don't even know what it is. It's pesto cream for the pasta."

"Oh," Nathan smiled, "well, tasted pretty damn good to me, _wife_."

"You're funny," her eyes widened in sarcasm, "but seeing as you're in the doghouse right now, I wouldn't be making those types of jokes. Brooke could walk in any minute you know."

He shrugged at the mention of his wife's name and she finished off the last bit of sauce left on the spoon, "Thanks for taking Sophie, Peyton. I really think I need this weekend with Brooke to sort things out and talk to her. But I'm surprised you're even talking to me."

Still holding the spoon in her hand, she crossed her arms across her chest, "Nathan, as much as I despise what you did with Haley, it was a _long _time ago, and you're still my best friend. And since Brooke's also my best friend, I'm all for peace, love, and happiness within the household."

"Thanks," Nathan offered, handing Sophie a toy to play with, "You didn't have to come over, though. I could've brought her to your place instead."

"It's cool, Nate. I wanted to talk to you anyway, without Jake and the kids running and screaming throughout the house."

"Is Jake cool with this, though?"

"Of course, you know how he is. He'd even take you in if Brooke ever tossed you out. Although, _I_don't know if I'd allow that."

He made a mocking face at her sarcasm and she smiled, "When's she coming back anyway?"

Nathan shrugged at the question as he bounced Sophie in his lap, "I'm not sure. Luke sent me a text message earlier saying Brooke was with him and not to worry, so I'm not sure if she'll be home tonight."

"So what's your plan to get back on her good side?"

"I," he began, "think…I'm just gonna clear up the misunderstanding. I don't want her to think I went to see Haley because I _wanted _to."

"Are you gonna tell her about the child she claims is yours?"

Nathan stared at his friend, contemplating the idea in his mind, "I don't know."

"Hmm," Peyton finally decided to take the seat beside him, "so I hope you've practiced your groveling when she does show up though. I'm sure it's expected of you based on the circumstances."

"Are you gonna keep bashing me or are you gonna go back to the kitchen and keep cooking?"

He received a smack on the arm for the comment and she stood up, walking away, "I wonder if _rat poison_ in the sauce will do the trick!" Nathan stood up and followed her into the kitchen, part of him hoping she wasn't serious.

--

Brooke made herself comfortable at the dining table as Lucas placed a plate of salad before her. She gave a grateful smile as she picked up the fork and waited for him to take a seat across from her, eyeing his chicken scallopine and mashed potatoes.

"Anyone ever tell you it's rude to stare?"

Brooke glared at Lucas's comment, making him take a bite of his chicken and purposefully moaning to as he savored the taste in his mouth. "Anyone ever tell you it's rude to have orgasms at the dinner table?"

"That's…a little gross." He pointed his fork at her, and dug into his mashed potatoes. She smiled as she took in a bite of her salad, "If you want, you can crash here for the night."

"Sounds tempting," she answered in between chews, "but I think I've avoided him long enough. I just…don't want to hear anything that…I _don't want _to hear, you know?"

"Mmhmm," Lucas agreed, "But the offer still stands. It's just a long drive and I'm not really comfortable knowing you're on the road this late."

"I'll be fine, but thanks for having me here. I didn't really know who else to turn to."

Lucas quirked his brow, "What about Peyton? Or Rae, for that matter. I hear you two have been getting along great and she's even taken over the store for you."

"As for Peyton," she waved her left hand, "she's a little busy with Jake and the kids. I just don't really want to burden her with anything. And Rae, well, I'm not sure if she's ready for the drama that Tree Hill offers."

Lucas offered a smile at the sound of Peyton's name, "I think it's great that she and Jake found each other. Granted, it was _while _she was with me, but I guess I can't judge." Brooke made a face to show understanding and he continued, "I'm happy for her."

"Are you really, Luke?" Brooke questioned, playing with the fork in her hand, "I mean, you were really in love with her, weren't you?"

"I _thought _I was," Lucas corrected, putting down the fork on the table, "I thought we really had this great connection about life, and art, and everything else. But my heart was never really there, I guess." He paused momentarily before finishing, "My heart never really left you."

"Luke..."

"Brooke, listen," He began to explain himself, "I know that it was a long time ago, but you were the first girl I ever really loved. And I know that I messed up and lied to you. But that night at the River Court when you cried into my arms about Nathan…I knew your heart belonged to him. And I was okay with that. But I want you to know, that I will _always _love you. And I'll always be here for you."

Brooke could feel tears well up in her eyes, and she shifted in her seat to try and shake them away. Lucas noticed her discomfort and he quickly eased it as much as he could, "Who would've thought Cheery from the backseat would end up being my sister-in-law instead?"

She made an 'O' with her mouth before bursting into laughter at the memory of being naked in the backseat of his car and flung a crouton towards him. He grinned at her act of momentary immaturity as she pretended to make a scorned face, "I still can't believe I ended up being a Scott, given your infamous family history. I was seriously considering keeping my last name, and maybe even making Nathan change his to mine."

Lucas scoffed at the idea, "Oh, really?"

"Of course. I am woman, hear me roar." She said, trying to keep a straight face, "But Nathan wouldn't have it."

"Gee, I wonder why," Lucas replied sarcastically.

"Whatever. Apparently, taking my last name would _'emasculate' _him." She explained, using her fingers as quotes.

Lucas smiled, noticing the smile on her face from talking about Nathan. Since she'd arrived, her facial expressions showed discontent with her husband, and it was the first time her eyes glistened at the mention of his name, even if it was about emasculating him. He continued to watch her as she went on about her and Nathan's argument about taking her last name, deep inside feeling an overwhelming amount of guilt knowing the true circumstances of why Haley had come back to Tree Hill.

--

Dinner left the two laying in the guest room bed, fighting the coma that awaited them. Sophie had finally fallen asleep after an hour of Nathan's attempt at singing lullabies, wishing Brooke was there to make it easier. He sighed as he looked up at the ceiling, in the dimness of the guest room as Peyton laid next ho him with her hands resting on her stomach.

"Do you really think that the kid is yours, Nate?"

Nathan kept his gaze on the ceiling, as if the answer would appear before him. He softly replied, "I don't know, Peyton. A big part of me wants to just deny it completely, but with what I did before, I can't say it's not a possibility."

"God, Nathan," her voice showed a mixture of frustration and sympathy, "how could you do that to Brooke? Maybe that was the old Nathan back in high school breaking girls' hearts, but _this _is not who you are anymore. Why?"

"I was drunk, Peyton," he tried to explain, although the words became more of a pathetic excuse every time he said it, "I didn't know what I was doing. Hell, I didn't even realize how much of a mistake it was until the next morning."

"Your conscience didn't even tell you anything? I mean, Nathan, a lot happens from the bar to the bed. I'm sure in between that you found yourself wondering what the hell you were doing."

"Did _you_, when you cheated with Lucas back then?"

Peyton sighed in annoyance at the low blow, "Nathan, let's not go there."

"I'm serious, Peyton," Nathan countered.

She blinked before responding in a regretful manner, "Not when we slept together the first time. Not 'til after when I realized what I'd done, but in a way, I thought it didn't even matter anymore because I'd done it so many times. It was like, why should I feel guilty now when it's been going on for a while and I didn't even care the first time it happened."

Nathan shook his head at her honesty, "So you understand when judgment clouds someone's mind, _especially _if they're drunk."

"I know what you're trying to say, Nate," Peyton tried to steer the direction back to the initial topic at hand, "But that was high school. That was when I didn't even care about what my actions did to people, especially to my own best friend. But this--" she motioned her hand from side to side, "with the whole Haley thing? That's different. Lucas and I never had a baby. Lucas and I didn't part ways in anger and bitterness. This is _a lot _more serious than sleeping around in high school."

Nathan mentally kicked himself, knowing he'd hit a sore spot regarding his best friend's high school dramatic antics. She was right, this _is _extremely serious. This could ruin his marriage, his entire family, and those around him would likely shut him out. He softly groaned at the thought of it all and Peyton reached for his hand, interlocking their fingers together and bringing it back towards her where she rested it on her stomach once again.

"Nathan," she began, finding the right words that conveyed honesty and encouragement, "I'm not gonna lie to you. This is gonna have a big dent in your marriage, and knowing Brooke, I really wouldn't be surprised if she took Sophie and left."

Nathan nodded in understanding, although cringed at her brutal honesty. "But I want you to know that no matter what happens, _I'm _here. And I'm sure Dean's there for you too. So you won't be completely alone."

"Peyton, please don't talk as if she's left," Nathan practically begged, "I know…that it's gonna crush her. But I'm willing to go through hell to make this marriage work and we've been through too much for it all to end over this. I want to consider this a bump on the road for us."

"_Nathan_," Peyton's voice became more firm, "You know this is _not _just a bump on the road." He tightened his hand against hers, and glanced at the clock on the wall, "She's not coming home tonight, is she?"

Peyton followed his eyes and as the clock struck midnight, she nodded her head slowly. "I guess I'm gonna go then. I don't want to wake up Sophie, seeing that it took you ages to put her to sleep. So I'll come get her tomorrow instead."

She began to slowly sit up, but Nathan's hand held a firm grip on hers. She turned to see him , pleading with his eyes as his voice whispered, "Stay with me tonight?"

"Nathan…"

"Please?"

All hopelessness was flooding from his eyes as she agreed, easing herself down in the previous position she laid in beside him, "Fine. But if my husband gets angry with me, I'm kicking _your _ass if it ruins _my _marriage."

He laughed, causing her to smile since it seemed as if he hadn't done so in years, "Don't worry, I think I'm getting used to being blamed around here." She nestled her head into the pillow as he made himself comfortable, still maintaining the hold on her hand.

--

Brooke pulled the blanket up to her chest as she laid in Lucas's bed, playing with the wedding band on her finger. Her eyes were watching the second hand on the clock as it ticked its way to midnight. Lucas had convinced her to stay the night, knowing that if she left, he would call her constantly on the drive home. Besides, she was getting too sleep to endure the two and a half hour drive to Tree Hill.

"You comfortable?" Lucas's voice appeared from the doorway.

Brooke gave an assuring nod, "Yeah. Thanks, Luke."

"No problem. I'll crash on the couch so just get some sleep, okay?"

"No," Brooke corrected, her voice in a low volume, "I mean for everything. You're always there for me whenever things go wrong and I guess I never really thanked you for that. I just wanted you to know that I'm grateful for it all. I love you, Lucas Scott."

He tilted his head and it rested lightly on the door frame, "I love you, too, Brooke," and he paused as her smile grew wide, "_Scott_."

She chuckled, sensing he still found it unbelievable she'd somehow married one of the Scott boys and was no longer Brooke Davis, high school cheerleader from Tree Hill. He reached for the doorknob, "Sweet dreams." She smiled back at him as he shut the door, leaving her in the darkness of the room.

--

Rae marched down the stairs, scratching her head when she realized how late it was. She scanned the room looking for Dean, who was sitting at the dining table with his laptop in front of him and papers scattered throughout the table. She sighed, realizing he was doing the usual detective work and walked over to brew a pot of coffee.

"Taking your work home again, hon?"

Dean's eyes were concentrated on the laptop, clicking with his finger any documents he found intriguing. He replied in a casual manner, "You know how it is."

"So what or who are you working on?" She leaned against the counter and folded her arms across her chest, waiting for the coffee to finish.

"You know I can't tell you that. Stuff like this is confidential."

"Dean," She rolled her eyes, "Like you've never shared any confidential information with me. Remember that murder a couple of years back that you were working on?"

"Of course, I remember," He looked up at her, "I almost got _fired _after you decided to debate the witness's testimony with the killer's lawyer."

"Touché," she nodded her head as he grinned, "Next time I'll remember to ask who I'm arguing with then." The brewer chimed and she picked up the pot, pouring the coffee into the mug she had waiting on the counter. Taking a sip of it, she questioned him again, "But really. What's so important about this that you're up at midnight?"

"Is it midnight, already?" He asked, but didn't remove his eyes from the laptop, "I didn't realize time had flown by."

"_Dean_." Her voice was stern this time, demanding him to tell her why he was still doing any work when the weekend was upon them.

Dean sighed in frustration, "It's not…_work_. It's more like a favor."

"Can't this favor wait 'til tomorrow morning?"

"I don't know," he replied, stirring irritation from his fiancee. She picked up another mug and poured the coffee into it, bringing it to Dean and sitting beside him. She scanned the documents scattered before her, noting that they were phone records, blurry photographs, bank statements and other paperwork, and glanced at the laptop screen, "Are you _stalking _someone?"

"What? No." He attempted to clean up the mess before her, but her hand reached for his arm to stop his movements. She tilted her head when she recognized a photograph peeking from underneath a folder, and she picked it up to take a closer look.

"Why…do you have a picture of Haley?"

Dean quickly took the picture from her and returned it to its place, "It's nothing. I'm almost done here, I'm going to bed soon."

She ignored his attempt to get her to leave and picked up a folder full of bank statements, scanning the page, "Isn't this illegal? What the hell are you doing?"

Dean let out an exasperated sigh, knowing full well she wasn't going to leave now that she'd gotten her hands on this. He turned the laptop to face her, "I'm just checking her out."

"You mean you're trying to find any skeletons in her closet?"

He swayed his head from side to side, "You can call it that."

"Can I be in on it? I'm sure I can find something, I live for stuff like this."

Dean's facial expression showed confusion and she clarified herself, "Hello, soap operas totally throw you into a whole 'nother world." He shook his head as she read through the bank papers in her hands, her eyes widening in discovery, "Have you _seen _these?"

"What?" He leaned towards her and found that she was talking about the bank forms, "Not really. I just had them laying there and I've been looking through all these other things."

"Well, it looks like there's a Lucas Scott sending Haley a check every month."

Dean eyes widened and he leaned into her again, "_What_?!"

She put the folder down so he could get a better view of it, but all the while leaning back in surprise, "Correct me if I'm wrong but haven't you seen worse things than checks being sent to people. We did live in L.A., you know."

"Yeah, but _this _is interesting. This is Nathan's _brother _sending Nathan's _ex-girlfriend _money every month."

Rae took in the information and sighed, "So does this mean she really has Nathan's child and he's being the big brother and sending him money because up 'til now, Nathan didn't know about it?"

"Good shit, babe," Dean answered, impressed at his fiancee, "But I'm sure there's more to this girl than we see on the surface. There's _gotta _be."

His laptop had resulted in thousands after searching throughout the web, leaving him disappointed that he couldn't find anything deeper than bank statements. Looking through the papers in front of him, Rae spotted an envelope that was clearly labeled CONFIDENTIAL and she ripped it open.

"Wha--" Dean attempted to protest, but found himself succumbing to her assertiveness. He watched as her eyes widened as she held up the papers before her, "What?"

"Um, how do you have her medical records? I'm pretty sure _that's _illegal."

"I don't, or at least, I shouldn't. I didn't even dig that far in. Why?"

She showed him the paper she was reading, and he reached for it after his eyes fell on the words that clued him into the jackpot they'd both been waiting for. He let out a relieved chuckle and read the words aloud, "Manhattan Psychiatric Center."

"_Wow_," Rae stood up and picking up both their coffee mugs and reaching for a new coffee filter, "We're gonna need more coffee."


	8. Author's Note

**Author's Note:** I'm taking a break from this story for many reasons. The first one being, another semester of school has started again and it's overwhelming and very demanding, which requires my full attention. Second, I'm beginning to lose interest in this story mostly because I don't think people are excited about the story as I am. Maybe it's too farfetched for some readers, but it's okay. If I take time away from school to write a story then I'd rather write something that people will enjoy. I have other story ideas in my head that I'm thinking about writing, but I just wanted to let the loyal readers of this story to know that it might be on permanent hiatus.

To all the loyal readers, thank you **very **much for taking the time to read _**and **_review my story. It truly means a lot that you guys are out there enjoying it, because I loved writing this story. Again, _**thank you**_.


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